


Into the Dragon's Lair: Eyes of Blue

by BlackRoseDragon



Series: Into the Dragon's Lair: A Seto Kaiba Story [2]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-08
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-03-02 02:43:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 30,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13308738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackRoseDragon/pseuds/BlackRoseDragon
Summary: (The second installment of the Into the Dragon's Lair series.)Dark forces are at work in the world when a ritual to resurrect Apophis goes wrong. Newlywed wife of Seto Kaiba - Rachel Pendragon - becomes the target of the deadly cult,the Sanctified, when she inadvertently becomes pregnant with the key to their resurrection spell; the spirit of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Led by the powerful sorcerer Nicodemus, the Sanctified will stop at nothing to retrieve what they need to complete their mission. In order to keep his wife and unborn child alive Kaiba begrudgingly teams up with old rival Yugi Muto to prevent the resurrection, and to stop the destruction of the universe at the hands of a radicalized cultist and the Egyptian God of Chaos before it's too late.





	1. Ritual Forgone

_This is it. The time has finally come. Nothing stands in our way._

Nicodemus sauntered into the sacristy chamber of the grand temple, taking care to reverently place every wrapped footstep just so on the ancient alabaster stone. His footfalls echoed across the cavernous room, only rivaled in sound by the sputtering torches lined along the walls and the whisper of his black, woolen cloak dragging behind him. 

There was no talking; none was necessary. Every one of his silent followers, heralding his arrival in two perfect rows flanking the path to the altar, didn’t need to be told the gravity of what was about to happen this night. The Sanctified had been prepared for this momentous occasion the entirety of their devotion - from Purification to the inevitable coming of Rapture – and had remained obediently delighted when Nicodemus had announced that he had achieved what he needed to induce the resurrection of their lord, Apophis. 

It had been no easy undertaking. Nicodemus, High Priest of the Sanctified and self-proclaimed “Eye of Apophis”, had pored over countless verses of the ancient texts of the gods that had long since been forbidden by the pharaohs of old. Though he had to desecrate many temples and tombs to retrieve such information (not that it bothered him to do so) he had gained invaluable insight into the fate of the universe and mankind. The ancient scrolls of Apophis had especially been hard to get his hands on; most had been burned or sealed away in booby-trapped tombs after the pharaoh Atem and his high priest, Seto, had managed to prevent the God of Chaos from unleashing his almighty wrath across the universe. It was in these texts that Nicodemus learned to control Heka, the ancient power of metaphysical magic that High Priest Seto himself had mastered before banishing its teachings in favor of the light. 

Nicodemus had also discovered the ancient ritual that would bring about the Rapture itself. It was far simpler than he had anticipated; as the Devourer of Souls, Apophis required the consumption of the power of all mythical beasts that had once roamed the Earth in order to rise again. These beasts had been banished to the Shadow Realm by Atem, sentenced to serve him in the form of stone tablets that housed their Ka. Instead of harnessing their raw power as he should have, Atem instead decided that these powerful creatures would be tamed and used as a form of entertainment across the dynasty. 

_Ungrateful bastard_ Nicodemus had cursed the pharaoh, but had all the same relished in how quickly Apophis would restore the universe to its rightful order. 

Nicodemus would have performed the ritual sooner, had it not been for Atem himself returning from the dead for several years. The pharaoh’s puzzle box, one of the seven Millennium Items that he had used to seal away the darkness of the Shadow Realm, had been excavated and by happenstance had fallen into the hands of a teenager named Yugi Muto. Nicodemus’s plans had been thwarted more than once by Atem in this vessel, through indirect means of keeping the Shadow Realm at bay and delaying the discovery of the ancient texts when Atem’s temple had collapsed on itself. It had left Nicodemus no choice but to wait until the pharaoh was finally gone for good before setting his ultimate plans into motion. 

_Eight years later, and tonight is when it all will end. No more pain, no more suffering – just the eternal power of Apophis, with me as his Eye._

Nicodemus approached the rectangular altar, keeping his eyes firmly on the towering stone tablet that was erected just behind it. Across the tablet's weathered, yellow face were hieroglyphic inscriptions describing the importance of this stone above all others; this tablet housed the mightiest beast of all, one even the pharaoh had no control over. Nicodemus smirked. _We'll see how well you've held up over the millennia, Kisara. _Stepping onto the rounded dais and kneeling before the pockmarked altar, Nicodemus lowered his head and closed his eyes. As he did, the rest of the Sanctified fanned out behind him in a semi-circle. Kneeling in a loud shush of cloth, the faithful followers all began chanting the spell that would lend their Heka to his so that he would have enough strength to do what he must.__

____

_“Almawt waldamaru, Apophis airtifae watathiruna…”_

A burning sensation pinpricked the base of his lower spine, directly in the center of his root chakra. He did not grimace or grunt as the pain intensified; he had long since outgrown acknowledging physical ailments. All the Heka provided by his followers flowed into his spine, filling his chakras with power so intense that it set his ears ringing and eyes blinded by internal light. The voices of the ancient spirits he had already captured plagued him, pleading for their release, but he blocked them out as easily as he ignored the pain. Nothing could stop him from resurrecting his lord; it was too late for that. 

_“Almawt waldamaru, Apophis airtifae watathiruna!”_

Nicodemus’s body began to shiver, jumping and trembling as though being electrocuted by millions of volts. In a way he supposed he was; the power of Heka was beyond what human minds could comprehend. Those that had tried harnessing it without reading the ancient scrolls of Seto first had all suffered excruciating deaths. Nicodemus had never felt such prowess before; he allowed the current to flow freely within him, opening a channel into the Shadow Realm to draw out the last creature needed to complete the resurrection once and for all. 

The low, rumbling energy of Apophis himself came into him like a bass vibration. There were words in the tonal thrumming, promises of eternal life and power upon the completion of the ritual, and urges to hurry. When he could stand it no longer Nicodemus rose to his feet, aiming his open palms at the enormous stone tablet behind the altar and releasing the Heka in a brilliant yellow-white stream of sizzling plasma. The tablet warped and slagged, crumbling around the beam like paper in fire. The temple began to quake, chunks of alabaster raining down on their heads as the tablet’s solid face gave way to the swirling, gaping maw of the Shadow Realm sealed inside. When the horrifying dimension was exposed to the temple, the Sanctified followers began to take up a different chant. 

_“Alwahsh kabirat mae euyun min allawn al'azraq, wayuqrid lana qutuk alhaqiqia!”_

The response from the tablet was powerful, as Nicodemus had expected it to be. The last creature, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, was described by the ancients as the most feared beast to have roamed the Earth. It was no wonder only High Priest Seto could control it; only one as full of chaotic light as the high priest had the slightest chance of bringing such a mighty creature to heel. It was unfortunate that his reincarnation in this life was just a feeble, selfish man that had the audacity to disbelieve such power, even when faced with it head-on. 

_No matter. He will die, as will Yugi Muto and all those who had wasted so much potential._

_“Alwahsh kabirat mae euyun min allawn al'azraq, wayuqrid—“_

The chant was interrupted as the massive spirit of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon suddenly exploded out of the stone tablet, showering Nicodemus and the Sanctified with hot rubble. The silver dragon’s roar pierced the air, shaking the temple so violently Nicodemus was concerned for a moment that it might collapse. He had never seen a spirit fight back so hard as this one; all the others had paled in comparison, giving in almost as quickly as they had emerged from their prisons. 

Nicodemus directed his Heka at the dragon. The shimmering plasma stream meant to capture the creature went wide, the winged beast executing a spin that brought it out of his line of fire and around the outer walls of the sacristy chamber. Beginning to grow frustrated, Nicodemus tightened his Heka and shot smaller beams from alternating palms like bullets. Those, too, missed their mark; the Blue-Eyes was proving to be an incredibly elusive and annoying opponent. 

Suddenly, as the dragon came around for a second pass, it disappeared in a flash of brilliant silver light. He waited, watching the place where it faded to see if it would reappear. When several seconds began to tick into minutes, Nicodemus felt his anger begin to boil over. 

“What happened? Where did she go?!” he bellowed, voice echoing sharply off the cracked walls of the chamber. The Sanctified, rising to their feet, twisted this way and that into the eerie calm that settled over the temple, looking for their prey. 

Without warning, the ground beneath the left side of the sacristy chamber ripped and shredded, opening up into a yawning purple chasm of the Shadow Realm that swallowed a handful of Sanctified whole. The Blue-Eyes shot from the opening, clipping another several followers with its leathery wings and sending them flying across the chamber to smash into the pillars, altar, and flagstones below. Nicodemus released a roar of outrage as the dragon climbed for the ceiling, blasting a ball of crackling white lightning from its mouth into the stones overhead. He tried to shoot a beam of Heka to stop it from escaping, but the loss of so many of his followers had broken his super-powered connection with the metaphysical magic. He could do nothing but watch as the dragon slipped through the hole it had blasted in the ceiling, disappearing into the moonlit night.

Nicodemus stared as the distant Blue-Eyes evaporated into a ball of shining silver light. The rage of Apophis filled him, burning his veins with venomous hatred and disappointment. The great serpent's whispers began to fade, promising threats of revenge if his rebirth was delayed any longer. 

_Soon, my lord…soon!_

“High Priest…what are we going to do?” came the timid voice of one of the followers behind him, breaking the painful silence. 

Nicodemus turned away from the hole in the ceiling, distant connection with Apophis severing. Doing his best to control his breathing, he stepped down off the altar to the Sanctified that had spoken. He yanked the voluminous black hood back to find a young man no older than seventeen staring at him, wide eyes darkening with fear as he took in Nicodemus’s face. Nicodemus grabbed him by the hair, dragging him out of line and tossing him across the dais to land on the altar face-first. He rolled the youth over with his booted foot, seizing a handful of the front of his cloak and yanking him half-off the stones. For a long moment he loomed over the young man, allowing the vengeful residual energy of Apophis to come burning through his Heka. Releasing the spring-loaded dagger strapped to his wrist, Nicodemus slashed the young man’s throat ear to ear.

The Sanctified remained silent as Nicodemus held the body through its death throes, then dropped it carelessly to the dais. He licked the clotted crimson blood from the blade, the salty taste satisfying the lust for death Apophis had left over in him. When he had sucked the blade clean he retracted it, turning back to his remaining followers.

“There is only one person on Earth that the Blue-Eyes White Dragon would seek out for protection,” Nicodemus rumbled, wiping the blood from his lips with the back of his hand. He stared at each shadowed hood of the Sanctified in turn, a snarl curling his lips and exposing his blood-stained teeth.

“Use your Heka to track the monster, and bring me the head of Seto Kaiba if she resists.” 

***  
  
Rachel dug her fingernails appreciatively into the backs of Kaiba’s hands, a powerful wave of ecstasy washing over her body as he slid himself inside her. She could feel his heart pounding away against his ribcage between her breasts, his body falling across hers like a hot, heavy blanket that kept her safe from the cold. He planted bites and kisses across her neck and chest, both above and below the pearl necklace strapped around her throat.  
  
“Seto…” she breathed into her husband’s ear, hiking her knees onto his hips and driving him deeper and deeper with each thrust he committed himself to. _My husband_ … Pleasure began to build in her naval, much faster and more intense than usual. She arched her back, giving into the wave of lust that began to fog her senses. 

Acknowledging the fact that she was no longer Rachel Pendragon but was now Rachel Kaiba, the man on top of her having given her that name only hours before, was more erotic in that moment than anything she could think of. It spiked arousal in her core, taking control of her like a powerful force of hypnotic magic. She felt herself fighting to draw him deeper, to release the pressure in her naval that had started to become painful.  
  
“ _Rachel_ ,” Kaiba groaned, dragging his fingers down her arms. He took a moment to release some tension in grasping and squeezing both her breasts before hooking his hands beneath her shoulders. Then he unleashed himself on her, driving into her so hard the pressure in her naval spread to her stomach and chest. 

A lustful cry escaped her lungs, threatening to turn into screams had she not bit down on Kaiba’s shoulder to stop herself. His hips rammed hers over and over, building the pressure to such a breaking point that Rachel thought she might actually crack.  
  
Kaiba must have experienced the same tension, because his back stiffened beneath her hands, corded muscles pulling taught. His breathing went from steady and heavy to erratic. He was getting close to release; pushing himself onto his elbows he grabbed two handfuls of her red-gold hair, yanking her head back into the pillows and sinking his teeth into her neck right beneath her chin. 

Just as she was no longer able to contain herself, a bright flash of silvery light blinded her. It slammed into Kaiba's back, forcing his spine to arch so hard and penetrate her so deep that the pressure instantly released from her naval in a crashing wave of euphoria. She screamed, squeezing her eyes shut; it felt like the light was moving through her body, heating her heart and soul as her husband came inside her. Kaiba continued to thrust into her as much as he could before his strength escaped him. He fell from trembling arms, unable to do anything but lay his head on her chest and attempt to catch his breath. 

Rachel’s lower abdomen grew unusually hot, so comforting and so powerful that she felt the urge to come again. Fighting it she squeezed her knees together around Kaiba's hips, lacing shaking fingers through her husband's sweat-matted brown hair.  
  
He eventually brought his gaze to hers; his eyes had turned so light blue they almost looked white in the soft candlelight. 

“Did you see that light?” she asked. 

Kaiba cupped her breast in his hand, kissing it gently. “What light?” he asked, voice scratchy from exertion. 

Rachel frowned. _Maybe I imagined it. We’ve never gone this hard before – it was probably my mind playing tricks on me_. She stroked her fingers down his back, relaxing her neck into the soft pillows of their bed. “Nevermind.” She exhaled a laugh. “I think you fucked me so hard I saw stars, Seto.” 

He grinned, propping himself up on his elbow to her side. He ran his fingertips tantalizingly down her body. “I hope that doesn’t mean you’re giving up on me.” 

Rachel’s lust reignited as Kaiba’s hand slipped between her legs. She smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him back on top of her.

“Hardly.” She kissed him, nibbling seductively on his lower lip. All thoughts of the mysterious light left her. “I have a feeling you were holding back on me anyway. It’s our wedding night – no more excuses for short-changing me, Kaiba.” 

He grinned, winding a hand through her curls and pulling her hair tight in a fashion that never failed to arouse her. 

“Yes, _Mrs. Kaiba_.”


	2. Grand Convergence

Seto, Rachel, and Mokuba gaped down at the crowd that had gathered at the front entrance of the Kaiba-Templar office building. People of all ages, nationalities and walks of life swarmed both the marble atrium and sidewalk out to the boulevard. Their bubbly conversation filled the atrium with a hum that vaguely reminded Seto of bad audio pickup in the static between radio stations; it began to grate on his nerves. 

“What a turnout,” Mokuba remarked, sweeping his black ponytail over his shoulder. Indigo eyes scanned the masses enthusiastically. He grasped the crystal railing of the tenth-level veranda they stood on, leaning far enough to take in the sight but not be seen. After a moment he turned his gaze on Seto. “I think this is the biggest I’ve ever seen for one of your events, big brother. You’re going to make a killing!” 

“So it seems,” Seto replied, fighting hard to contain his own exuberance. Conceived by the three of them, the annual Duel Monsters event hosted by Kaiba-Templar this year was a far-cry compared to the previous competitions KaibaCorp used to hold. The same Duel Monsters tournament at Kaiba Land would be the backdrop, but instead of using the traditional dueling arenas they were going to mass test the company’s new “walking” virtual reality technology. Hooked into the duel disks that Templar Technologies had created, the VR headset had been minimized to a pair of glasses that would project the simulation directly into the user’s brain through their brain wave activity. It was a perfect union of the KaibaCorp Crystal Cloud Network and Templar Tech simulations, and was ready to be unleashed on the world. 

The stakes were also much higher for this tournament than they had been in the past. Whereas the winners before were granted rare cards or a substantial cash prize, Rachel had come up with the idea to reward players with special status commendations within the company. These commendable players would be given the title of “Kaiba-Templar Knights”, and would have special access to events at Kaiba Land, new game and technology releases, so on and so forth. Seto had been disgruntled about it at first; the thought of granting a group of undeserving ingrates private access to promotional events made his skin crawl. But Rachel had made the extremely valid point that allowing the public to know they had the chance for insider access to Kaiba-Templar’s products would have them clambering up the walls just to get a taste. Profits would skyrocket. 

_As evidenced by the horde below_. Seto turned a grin on his wife. “Gotta hand it to you, sweetheart – I expected your idea to be successful, but not _this_ successful.” 

Rachel granted him a pretty smile as she turned his direction. “You catch more flies with honey, Seto. That’s how it’s always been, and always will be.” She reached up, throwing back the hood of her cloak to reveal a cascade of red-gold hair that was her crowning glory. She unhooked the clasp around her throat and dropped the shimmering silk cloak to the floor. Beneath it she was wrapped in a magnificent cotehardie dress of pinks and reds, a gold sash at her hips and a mother-of-pearl coronet woven into her curls. As it had been her idea to create the Kaiba-Templar Knights, it was fitting that she open the tournament as the queen that ruled them all – her own ancestor, Guinevere. 

Seto smiled. It was spectacularly outlandish and gaudy – only a month of being a Kaiba, and Rachel was living up to the name perfectly.

“Are we ready?” she asked, fluffing her curls once for good measure. 

Mokuba nodded. He produced a small touch-screen tablet from his inner coat pocket, opening the app that would allow him to command her awe-inspiring entrance into the crowd below. He typed in a command, and the anti-gravity belt hidden inside the sash at Rachel’s hips whispered to life. Her feet lifted from the floor; she hovered between the brothers, skirts flowing on the current like some heavenly force incarnate. Mokuba gave her a toothy grin. 

“Right as rain, big sister,” he replied happily. “On your mark.” 

Rachel turned to Seto, her verdant eyes sharp but nervous. “Don’t take too long.” 

Seto took her hands, pulling her floating form toward him for a kiss. “I’ll be right behind you.” When he released her hands, she gracefully spun away. “Knock ‘em dead, Rachel.”

She graced him with a wink and a grin before flipping over the crystal railing and plummeting feet-first to the atrium below. Though he expected it to happen, it did nothing to stop him from leaning over the railing and nervously watching her descent. She fell like a rosy meteor, picking up speed with every level she passed. 

It took a moment for the crowd to react. Just as she passed the sixth-level veranda there was a scream from among the throng, followed by a panicked uproar of people either trying to get out of her way or trying to judge where to stand in order to catch her. Just as she passed the third-level veranda, Mokuba activated the anti-gravity belt once again. 

Rachel halted to a stop right beside the second-level veranda, skirts blooming like flower petals against the loss of motion. Mokuba stabbed another button on the tablet, and a royal fanfare boomed throughout the atrium. Rachel lifted her hands, dalmation sleeves billowing in the zero-g. 

“Lords and Ladies, for the past two weeks you have been waiting in anticipation for Kaiba-Templar to opens its doors for the annual Duel Monsters tournament in New Domino City,” she proclaimed, strong voice ringing out across the lobby. Outside, faint echoes came back from the projectors scattered across the office complex. She clasped her hands at her waist. “Today, you stand among the luckiest people in the world. Most of you will prove your worth against your fellow duelist; most will walk away empty-handed. Yet all will have a fighting chance to compete using the most cutting-edge technology, for the most grandiose prize ever offered in the history of the game!” 

The crowd went berserk as Rachel floated toward the center of the lobby, spinning like a graceful ballerina. The smile on her face was heavenly. “Money can only buy so much happiness – at least for the average person – so my husband and I have decided to offer you something bigger, better, and worth all the bragging rights you can muster.” 

She raised her right hand above her head - Seto’s cue to enter. 

“See ya later, Seto,” Mokuba grinned, activating a second switch on the tablet’s touch screen. Seto’s own anti-gravity belt flared to life as he vaulted over the crystal railing. The hem of his black KaibaCorp coat slapped wildly against the wind as he hurtled toward the packed lobby below. More screams came up from the crowd, though these screams were exhilarated rather than panicked. As Seto came up fast to Rachel’s position, his anti-gravity belt kicked in and jolted his descent to a halt. His left hand locked with her upraised right one; the music changed from a traditional fanfare to a modern dubstep beat, a holographic projection of the Kaiba-Templar sword and shield logo appearing in the air above their heads. 

The overjoyed roar at Seto’s entrance nearly deafened him. He grinned, spinning Rachel away with a push. She floated beside the hologram, flourishing her wrist in an upward curl; the hologram changed to one showing twelve androgynous shadows standing side-by-side. Above their heads scrolled the name “Kaiba-Templar Knights” in several languages. 

“Rather than waste your time on offering the same old thing year after year,” Seto took up where Rachel had left off in the speech, gesturing to the hologram above his head, “My wife and I thought it would be pertinent to keep up with the times under our rebranded company. Twelve lucky souls among you right now will be given the chance, should they complete the parameters of the tournament’s requirements, to gain the title of the very first round of Kaiba-Templar Knights!” 

If he thought the crowd’s joy before was deafening, he had been sadly mistaken. The music was drowned out in a tsunami of shouts, screams, and hurrahs. People raised their arms, throwing their heads back in praise as if he and Rachel were their pagan gods. In a way he supposed they were, though he tried not to let the thought go to his head. Once the cheering had died down enough for his voice to be heard, Seto continued.

“The title of a Kaiba-Templar Knight is one of great honor. Not only would it reflect on your prowess as a duelist, but it also grants you premium access to events, promotions, and new releases of Kaiba-Templar gaming technology!” He grinned. “It would be the passcode to all your dreams come true!” 

Rachel floated back over to him, the skirts of her dress wrapping around his legs. She slipped her hand into his. “And now, as co-presidents of the Kaiba-Templar Corporation, we declare this tournament officially open!”

Their anti-gravity belts hummed into high gear, lifting them up away from the atrium. The crowd cheered as they ascended floor by floor, the volume and pitch of their thrumming excitement thankfully dropping away with distance. When Seto and Rachel floated back over the tenth-level veranda railing, Mokuba greeted them with a crushing hug. 

“You guys were great!” he cried happily. “Just during your speech alone Kaiba-Templar’s profits increased by –Rachel, are you okay?!” 

Seto whipped his head around. Rachel, though still smiling, had gone sickly pale. She pressed a hand to her stomach, warding off his concern with an upraised palm. “I’m okay,” she replied weakly. “I just feel like I’m gonna puke.” She turned green eyes on Mokuba. “I think the sudden zero-g’s was what did it, because I felt fine before…” She stopped herself, pursing her lips. She turned green. “I’ll be back,” she managed to blurt before turning on her heel and sprinting to the tenth-level restroom as fast as her dress would allow. 

Seto watched her disappear around the corner. Concerned, he turned on Mokuba. “Has any testing shown these things to cause that kind of reaction?” 

Mokuba shook his head. “Not that I know of…all the subjects appeared to be fine after using the belts, even several hours at a time.” He shrugged, eyes filled with the same concern Seto felt. “Maybe it was the drop? A sudden stop like that could’ve shaken her up.” 

Unconvinced, Seto nodded. “Maybe…still, have the belts tested again. Recreate the same scenario that she and I just had; do it today. If it causes sickness, scrap it and have it rebuilt. Do you understand?” As an afterthought, he added, “Oh, and fire whoever created the original design. Kaiba-Templar doesn’t need any idiots working in its development department.” 

Mokuba nodded. “Yes, Seto. I’ll get it done right now.” He held out his hand. “Let me take yours.” 

When Seto unstrapped his belt and handed it to his little brother, he turned without another word and strode down the corridor the direction Rachel had fled. 

_I hope she’s all right…_


	3. Smoke and Mirrors

Nicodemus stood on the abandoned sand-stone streets of the Saqqara necropolis, legs spread and hands clasped behind his back. The air was warm and dry, the arid heat causing him to sweat beneath his rough-spun cotton tunic. 

He faced the pile of rubble that had once been the Temple of Apophis. The sandstone and alabaster blocks had been chipped away by time and manmade destruction, though the evidence of a great former wealth still spoke through the stones. Jagged pieces of the heavy brown columns that once supported the massive temple still stood in places, jutting up through the mess like fingers of a grasping hand. The surface of the columns were decorated in hieroglyphs of the Old Kingdom, foretelling the world’s rule by the fearsome deity. 

Nicodemus picked his way among the rubble, running a hand across the pockmarked stone of the nearest column. His fingertips traced the grooves of the sigils craved into the surface. He sighed. _Atem destroyed this place after he and Seto defeated Apophis. If they hadn’t, we would have done the summoning ritual here. The Blue-Eyes would never have had the power to escape then._ He swallowed, a creeping feeling of being watched crawling up his spine. He closed his eyes, touching his forehead to the pillar. 

_My lord, you will be reborn very soon. We know exactly where the creature went, and we will have her back soon._

“High Priest?” 

Nicodemus turned at the voice. A tall, powerfully-built man stepped through the rubble, coming up on the other side of the column. His dark brown eyes took in Nicodemus from above a hooked nose, smooth brown skin contrasting sharply with a shock of brilliantly blonde hair. Though his face was normally impassive, there was something about the man's body language that dropped Nicodemus’s stomach. 

“What have you found, Falcon?” 

Falcon pursed his lips. “Nothing, High Priest. We have fanned out far and wide across the globe, but the dragon’s energy is gone. There wasn’t even a signature trace left behind from the night she escaped.” 

Nicodemus swallowed, his throat going even drier than it already was. He had expected as much, but several things still bothered him about Falcon’s report that he couldn’t get his mind around. The fact that the Blue-Eyes had come out full-force and fighting when he had blasted open its tablet was the first mystery. According to the ancient texts the monsters’ powers had been stripped by Atem, leaving them only a shadow of their former selves. Yet the Blue-Eyes White Dragon had been able to slip in and out of dimensions, evade capture and even kill several of the Sanctified despite being an incorporeal being.

Then there was also the matter of where it went. An energy signature that powerful should have been easy to track through Heka. Yet once she had broken out of the temple, her energy had completely disappeared. Deep down, Nicodemus knew the only place she could have gone would have been straight to her former master – Seto Kaiba. However, he had begun to doubt that after nearly a month of searching and finding nothing. Even circumstances revolving Kaiba had been uneventful. Nicodemus had been surprised to learn that Kaiba had taken a wife, but there seemed to be nothing extraordinary about the woman. 

It was a devastating setback. 

“What’s our plan?” Falcon asked, deep voice rumbling in his chest. 

Nicodemus pushed off from the column, turning to his right-hand follower. “Timing is everything, Falcon,” he replied. He still felt the creepy-crawly sensation up his spine as he turned his back on the Temple of Apophis. “The longer the Blue-Eyes White Dragon is out of her tablet, the weaker she is going to get. We need to double our efforts and look for any signs of her presence, everywhere.” 

“What about Seto Kaiba?”

Nicodemus nodded. “Put extra surveillance on everything to do with him; his wife, his brother, his company – _everything_ about him needs to be watched closely. If he sneezes, I want to know about it. Immediately.” He glanced at Falcon. “Kisara would run to him without hesitation, I _know_ it – she must be lying low to avoid our detection.” He ran a hand through his black hair, flicking sweat off his fingertips as he and Falcon picked their way back through the rubble. 

“I can only appease Lord Apophis with so much innocent blood until it is too late; we will have to improvise until we can track Kisara down.” He nodded to Falcon. “In the meantime, I think another sacrifice is in order.” He smiled wickedly. “Go to Cairo and round up another whore; their blood always seems to sate Apophis’s appetite the best.” 

 

* * *

 

Rachel barely flung herself into the bathroom stall when her guts wrenched, heaving up chunks of what tasted like her dinner from the previous night. It was so vile, so disgusting that it caused her to wretch over and over again. 

_What the hell is going_ on she thought, clinging to the porcelain toilet bowl and desperately trying to keep her hair out of line with her face. She had not felt sick at all that morning; she had taken breakfast with Mokuba and Seto as usual, and had not felt any different even after she had slipped into her Guinevere costume. The nausea had been sudden, taking root right after Seto had taken his tenth-level plunge during the opening ceremony only minutes ago.

_It had to have been the jump. Stopping suddenly probably turned my stomach._ The rationalization somehow seemed to ease her roiling innards, leaving Rachel trembling. Wiping her mouth with a wad of tissue, she flushed the toilet and exhaled slowly. Standing, she tried to get her shivering under control. She ran a hand down her dress, smoothing out the wrinkles, before finally opening the stall door. 

A petite woman was standing at the row of sinks, watching her in the mirror curiously. Her silver hair flowed down her back, almost looking fluid in the soft light against her simple brown shift dress. She had the youthful appearance of a teenager, yet her eyes looked ancient and sad. There was no way to describe those eyes other than majestic; they were crystal blue and so striking that Rachel felt the woman was looking into her soul. And though Rachel couldn’t place her finger on where, she was pretty sure she had seen this young woman before. 

Unnerved, Rachel attempted a smile. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize there was anyone else in here.”

The young woman smiled, but didn’t respond. She didn’t even move – just continued to stare. 

Embarrassed, Rachel moved toward the sink beside the woman. She pushed back her dalmation sleeves, the faucet flicking on at the wave of her hands. “I apologize, that must have been terrible to listen to.” 

The woman’s smile widened just a fraction— then she faded from existence. 

Rachel’s heart leapt into her throat with a ragged gasp. She placed shaking hands flat against the granite counter, staring at the spot where the young woman stood only seconds ago. Her stomach turned again, another wave of nausea threatening to spill her guts into the sink. She desperately clawed at the pearl necklace around her throat for comfort. 

_What’s happening to me?! Now I’m hallucinating?_

“Rachel?” 

Kaiba’s voice from the door instantly calmed her churning stomach. Quickly running her hands beneath the water and drying them, she stepped out of the restroom and into the corridor. Kaiba was waiting for her, his angular face riddled with concern. As soon as she was clear of the doorway he clasped his hands on her shoulders. “Honey, are you all right?” 

She shook her head, unsure what to say. “I-I don’t know, Seto. I feel better, but…I still feel weak.” She pressed her lips together. “And I think I even hallucinated; I saw a person in the bathroom that ended up not actually being there.” 

His blue eyes narrowed. “You _hallucinated_?” He touched a palm to her forehead, his face tightening. “You’re burning up, Rachel. We need to get you to a doctor.” 

Rachel frowned, placing the back of her own hand to her forehead. He was right; her skin was searing to the touch. She hadn’t felt feverish before, and still didn’t – yet even despite the vomiting and random head trip of the young woman in the bathroom, she felt completely fine after reuniting with Kaiba. 

“I-I’m fine,” she stammered as her husband slipped an arm about her shoulders, ushering her quickly down the hall. “I just need to lay down.” 

“No, you need a _doctor_ ,” he reiterated harshly, tightening his grip. He gave her a stern look. “Don’t argue with me, Rachel.”

Ire rose like bile in her throat. Knowing he wouldn’t stop once he was in that kind of mindset, Rachel dug her heels into the floor and forced him to come up short lest he knock her over. He turned a glare on her, one that she shot right back with all the fire she could muster.

“Seto, I’m _fine_ ,” she snapped, pushing his arm from her shoulders. “I just want to rest.”

Anger tightened the corners of his mouth. He squared up to her, using his imposing height to tower over her. “Now’s not the time for that fucking Pendragon stubbornness. Did you even stop to think that your sickness may have been caused by the anti-gravity ring?” He stepped closer, their chests touching. His face softened. “Until we know the ring didn’t do this, you need to get seen. And if I have to carry you there, I will.” 

Rachel sighed. He was right; even _she_ had suspected that the sudden onslaught of nausea had come from the anti-gravity stunt. Though something deep in the pit of her core told her that she had made a full recovery, it was better to be safe than sorry. 

_And the hallucination…_

She let her eyes fall closed for a moment. When she opened them a knowing smirk had touched Kaiba’s lips. She couldn’t help but return it. 

“All right, let’s go. Then after that I’ll require at least an hour of snuggling to make up for it.” 

He put his arm about her shoulders again, full-out grinning. 

“I’ll do you better – we’ll make it two.”


	4. Fickle Alliance

Dinner that night was served in the ballroom of the Kaiba Estate. The large, gold-leafed room sparkled with both artificial and candle light, filled with decorations that dated from Seto’s initial acquisition of KaibaCorp. The smells of a large array of foods, both American and Japanese, hung heavy on the air. 

It did nothing to alleviate the antiseptic smell that lingered in his nose from Kaiba-Templar’s medical lab, however. After Rachel’s frightening episode of vomiting and hallucinations that morning, he had forced her to get tested by the company’s research lab against her insistence. He had feared that her sudden sickness might have been caused by the anti-gravity technology the lab had developed; while she had turned out to be fine pending some blood tests, Seto had taken the proactive decision to fire the entire design team responsible for the anti-gravity belt and scrap the project to be rebuilt from scratch. It was better to be safe than sorry. 

After her release, they had reconvened with Mokuba for lunch, which led to an impromptu discussion on how best to attract as many duelists as possible to the tournament. Rachel had made an offhanded comment about how she had wondered if Yugi Muto would come out of his dueling retirement to compete, and when she had turned fluttering eyelids on Seto he felt his heart sink into his stomach. Having the King of Games return for a showcase duel was the perfect way to kick off the tournament, there was no doubt; however, Seto still felt uncomfortable knowing that he would be pitted against Yugi in a spectacle he knew he would most likely lose. 

Which was why he made sure the dinner was so extravagant tonight. On his wife’s insistence, Seto had invited (ordered, really) Yugi to arrive for a black-tie meal to discuss his role in the tournament. Deep down, he had hoped the overwhelming opulence of the ballroom and stiff requirements for dinner dress would deter Yugi from showing up, but it had the exact opposite effect. Yugi had arrived on time, sharply dressed in a black and red double-breasted Tang that matched the colors of his hair. He greeted Rachel like an old friend, which made it even worse. 

Now, sitting at the head of the long oak table, Seto watched with narrowed eyes as Rachel and Yugi chatted lightheartedly about the upcoming tournament. He ached for Mokuba’s presence; his little brother had gone to the satellite station to do last-minute testing on the Crystal Cloud Network for the tournament’s opening day tomorrow.

“I watched the opening ceremonies from the card shop,” Yugi was explaining, leaning back in his seat as the wait staff piled his plate with food. His violet eyes were shimmering. “I was impressed with the whole thing – how did you guys hover like that? Were you on wires?”

Rachel giggled, tipping her wine glass his direction and winking. “Kaiba-Templar secret, I’m afraid, Yugi. It was certainly fun, though something I think I’d rather not do again for a while.” She sipped the red wine, gazing over the rim of the glass at Seto. 

“Why, did something happen?” Yugi asked, frowning. 

“ _Nothing_ happened,” Seto lied, butting in on the conversation as his own wine glass was filled. “We were fine.” He drained the glass in one swallow, setting it down for another. He stared evenly at Yugi, ignoring a warning look from Rachel. “We’re here to discuss business, Yugi, not chit-chat.” 

Yugi’s violet eyes locked with his. Even in the eight years since his departure, Seto could still see remnants of the pharaoh left behind in those eyes. It was almost painful to look at. “Yes, of course, Kaiba. What would you like to talk about?” 

His insulting tone of voice pricked Seto’s irritation. Feeling an old spark of his long-dead rage flare to life, Seto clenched his fists under the table. He opened his mouth to spew a nasty retort, but Rachel must have seen it coming for she intervened with a loud clearing of her throat. 

“Yes, business,” she interjected, shooting an evil glare at Seto before turning in her seat toward Yugi. “If you’re interested, Yugi, Seto and I had thought it would be an honor if you could help us promote our tournament.” 

Yugi’s eyes softened as they turned on her. “How can I help?” 

Rachel picked up a tofu bun from her plate, casting about for her butter knife. “Seto and I thought that the opening duel should almost leave something to desire for the other duelists. Something so big and so impressive that every participant would want the same for themselves.” She finally found her knife, flourishing it at Yugi with a grin. “I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this idea.” 

He returned the smile. “I can imagine it involves another duel between Kaiba and I.” 

“Bingo.” Rachel looked across the spread of food on the table, clearly searching for something. 

“Looking for something?” Seto pointed out.

“Yeah – is there any peanut butter?” Rachel asked.

Seto thought she was joking at first, but when her expression remained serious he frowned. “ _Peanut butter_? What for?” 

She turned imploring emerald eyes on him. “Yes, peanut butter – it sounds really good with the tofu buns.” She looked to Yugi. “Don’t you think?” 

Yugi shrugged, looking as confused as Seto felt. “Can’t say I’ve ever actually _had_ peanut butter before...” He glanced to Seto for help. 

Seto sighed, snapping his fingers. _Weird…must be an American thing_. When one of the wait staff appeared at his side, he commanded, “Get Lady Kaiba some peanut butter; go to the American trade post if you have to, but make it quick.”

“Yes, Mr. Kaiba.” The waiter bowed and moved swiftly across the ballroom. When he disappeared from sight Seto turned back to his wife. Genuine concern touched his heart; first the random sickness, now a random craving for peanut butter? “Are you feeling okay?”

She frowned at him. “I feel fine – why?” 

He shrugged, swirling noodles around his chopsticks and lifting them from the plate. “I dunno, it’s just…a really strange request.” He took a bite, gesturing to Yugi with the end of his utensils. “Continue.” 

Yugi’s face turned contemplative as he considered Rachel once again. “Anyway, I would be happy to help, Rachel. Would entering the tournament be a requirement, or would our duel just be for entertainment purposes?” 

Rachel chewed on her tofu bun thoughtfully for a moment before turning a questioning gaze on Seto. “That’s a good question – what do you think, honey?”

Seto pondered it. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that if Yugi entered the tournament as a player, he would become one of the fabled Kaiba-Templar Knights. No other duelist he had ever known held any sort of competition against the King of Games, even without the pharaoh’s guidance; it almost seemed unfair. Then again, as he had pointed out to himself earlier, there was no better way to drive up Kaiba-Templar’s profits than to have a dueling legend be involved somehow. Giving the other players the illusion that they had the chance to beat Yugi Muto himself would give them that edge. 

_But the opening battle of the tournament being between two duelist legends is imperative._

He sighed around another mouthful of noodles. “As much as I hate to admit it…I think both need to happen. A grandiose opening duel to get the players hyped, as well as giving them the chance to challenge Yugi too…it’s a win-win situation for us.” He glared at his old rival. “And for _you_ , Yugi. It’s obvious that there’s no competition for you out there aside from myself. So you might as well consider yourself a Kaiba-Templar Knight already.”

Yugi’s cheeks pinked. “I wouldn’t say _that_ , Kaiba. It’s been a few years since our last duel…I’m sure I’ll be a little rusty.” 

Seto scoffed, resting his chopsticks against the side of his plate. “Don’t patronize me. I’ve suffered more defeats against that deck of yours than I care to admit. It’s hard enough to agree to something I know I have no chance of winning; I don’t need your sympathy to salt the wound.”

Yugi’s eyes darkened. “You can’t let _anything_ go, can you, Kaiba? Our duels only got personal because you made them that way.”

Seto felt that spark of rage grow into a flame. He gripped the chopsticks in his hand so hard his knuckles went white. “Don’t you dare start that shit with me again, Yugi. I _know_ —“ 

“ _Knock it off_ ,” Rachel snapped angrily. Her tone jarred him; when he looked at his wife, the rest of his argument died on his tongue. Her green eyes were blazing with that fiery indignation he had come to love – and _hate_ – about her. She gave Yugi the same look, causing him to squirm in his seat. “Look at you two – all you do when you’re around each other is bicker. You’re like an old goddamn married couple.” She returned her glare to Seto. “This happened at the wedding, too, but I will _not_ allow it to continue.” She pushed herself from her seat, the rhinestones beaded across her maroon dress reflecting the candlelight like a blanket of stars across her torso. She gave both men one final, imperious glare. “I was going to suggest that Yugi face us _together_ for the opening duel, Seto, but clearly your petty bullshit is much more important.” 

“Rachel—“ he started, but she cut him off with a severe look. 

“Do what you want, but I'm done with this conversation. As long as something productive is decided and neither of you end up punching the other, that’ll be fine by me.” 

With that she turned and walked away from the table. The waiter Seto had sent for peanut butter had returned at that very moment; when he and Rachel intersected paths she snatched the plastic container out of his hands, returning to the table to grab a spoon before resuming her angry departure. 

When she was gone, Yugi arched an inquisitive eyebrow at Seto. “Is she _always_ like that?”

Seto sighed, putting his face in his palms and rubbing his eyes. Rachel was normally very level-headed, but today had been hell with her. Bickering was something they found themselves doing every so often, but never so much in one day. He was sympathetic to her sickness, but that sympathy had begun to wear thin when the slightest things had seemed to irritate her.

 _The price of being married…_

“No…she hasn’t been this big of a bitch since we first met.” He dragged his fingers down his face. “It’s been a long day.”

Yugi’s expression turned compassionate. “I bet. Hosting Kaiba-Templar’s very first tournament with a stunt like you guys pulled and the stakes you put on the table can’t be easy.” He stared in silence for a moment. ‘But she _is_ right, Kaiba. It’s about time that we left our past where it belongs.” 

Seto stared long and hard at Yugi. _He’s caused me so much pain, so much anguish and embarrassment….those are scars that will never heal. He’s suggesting something that I can’t do; let it go, forgive it like it were some white lie rather than years of repeated humiliation._

 _But look at Rachel_. The thought surprised him, having come from a place deep in his mind that seemed to shut down when Yugi came around – logic. _She dealt you one of your greatest defeats, and you married her. You love her; why can’t that same effort be extended in friendship toward Yugi?_

“Perhaps,” was all he had the courage to say. 

Yugi sighed, testing the beef filet on his plate. Silence took up between them, lasting until the meal was over. When the wait staff began picking up the table on Seto’s command, he rose from his seat. Yugi did the same, and both men exited the ballroom side by side. 

“You’ll show up at 8’oclock sharp in the morning, Yugi,” Seto ordered, shoving his hands in his pockets and keeping his gaze straight ahead as he led Yugi toward the front door. “I’ll have Roland pick you up at the card shop.” 

He could see Yugi’s head turn. “I haven’t agreed to anything yet, Kaiba.” 

“Yes, you have.” He stopped, squaring up to his old rival. “I know you, Yugi Muto – you and I have a lot more in common than I care to admit. This is something you would never pass up; the opportunity to brush off the dust and take on the world again, it _thrives_ in you.” Seto’s eyes slid to the floor, a rare flood of emotion overcoming him. “Like it does for me. I may have gotten over the pharaoh, but I still haven’t gotten over you.” 

“Kaiba?”

Seto raised his eyes to Yugi’s violet ones. “We may never have been friends, may never be…but I know moral support when I see it.” He shrugged one shoulder. “It’s something I picked up from Rachel. She always looks for the candle in the darkness, even with the brother that tried to kill her.” 

Yugi’s jaw slackened into a smile. He clasped a hand on Seto’s shoulder, firm and assuring. 

“We’ve always been there for you, Kaiba – all of us. You were just blinded by rage and arrogance. Friendship and love can overcome any hardship, no matter how impossible it seems.” He winked. “That’s something _I_ picked up from Atem.” 

Regaining his confidence, Kaiba shrugged Yugi’s hand off his shoulder. “Don’t get used to the idea of friendship between us, Yugi. I’d rather die before that happens.” He turned on his heel, continuing down the corridor. “Just so we’re clear, this is a business venture only. After we’re through, even when you become a Kaiba-Templar Knight, I don’t want to see that much of you.”

“If you say so, Kaiba.”


	5. Eye of the Storm

Rachel didn’t hear Kaiba come in to the bedroom; her mind was swirling with so many thoughts and emotions that she couldn’t make sense of anything, let alone concentrate on the outside world. His gusty sigh startled her so badly that she felt something pop in her lower spine when she jerked upright on the bed. 

“You _really_ wanted that peanut butter, didn’t you?” He was contemplating the empty jar in his hand. When he turned to her his eyes were cold and unfriendly. “That was quite the performance you put on tonight.” 

“ _I_ put on a performance?” she snapped, pushing herself off the bed. She still wore the maroon evening gown, having lacked the motivation to remove it. It rustled as she stood and raised her arms in a shrug. “So, we’re just not going to talk about your little love taps with Yugi down there? Because if _I_ put on a performance, what _you_ did deserves an Academy Award.” 

Kaiba slammed the empty peanut butter jar down on the nightstand where he found it, knocking the spoon to the floor. His icy eyes flashed with the same rage she had seen earlier when he was addressing Yugi about the tournament.

“Why the hell are you being such a bitch?” He took a step toward her. “I didn’t _want_ to do this tonight, Rachel. _You_ were the one that suggested Yugi be a part of it. You know how I feel about him, so you don’t have the excuse to be surprised.” He gestured to her. “ _You_ , on the other hand—“

“What _about_ me, Kaiba?” she challenged, closing the gap between them in three steps. Her own rage drove her, spoke her words for her. She couldn’t stop herself, even though she knew this fight was ridiculous to begin with. “You’re going to try and blame me for putting you in an awkward position? That’s _your_ fault, Seto – if your head wasn’t so far up your own ass, you’d see that there are more important things in life than trying to relive some old high school rivalry you had once.” 

“Bullshit,” he spat, getting in her face. “You act like this is all _my_ fault. Well I’ve got news for you, Pendragon – it’s _your_ fucking fault. You committed me to something that I didn’t agree to, and look how far it got us.” He put a finger in her face. “You’ve been acting like this all day, and I’m sick of dealing with it. So you can run off to Yugi to solve your problems for all I care, since that’s what you seem to want so badly anyway.” 

Though regret instantly crossed his expression, the nasty words hit her like a kick to the gut. Tears welled up in her eyes; not about to give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry, she whirled away from him and headed to the large window beside their canopy bed. She planted her palms flat on the sill, casting her gaze across the moonlit garden below as hot tears fell from her eyes. 

_Get it together, Rachel. Something’s off about you…maybe you ARE sick_. She lifted her flooded eyes to the sky, the full disc of the moon swimming through her tears. She thought she saw a cloud pass across it, but couldn’t be sure. _Seto’s just being an ass because of Yugi. You can talk to him about it tomorrow. You’ve argued like this before – what’s so emotional about it this time?_

Her heart dropped into her stomach as she felt him come up behind her. His sigh was heavy with regret.

“I’m sorry.” 

Rachel bit her lip, sucking in a sob. She squeezed her eyes shut. 

“Leave me alone.”

Strong arms circled her waist. She tried to brush them off, but Kaiba only tightened his grip. It made her tears burn even more. “I took a vow not to do that, remember?” Kaiba reminded her gently, resting his chin on her shoulder. 

Rachel craned her neck away as far as she could, keeping her focus on the moon. She brushed tears from her eyes, crossing her arms. It was painful to ignore him; something inside her screamed to hold him, desperate and afraid that she might lose him if she didn’t. She repressed the sensation, knowing it was nonsense – but it rooted her to the spot. 

“Do you forgive me?” 

Her eyes lifted to the moon again. Without tears she could see the night sky clearly, how the stars blanketed the deep midnight expanse. A shadow passed across the moon again; a frown drew her brows together. It was a completely cloudless night. 

_What was that?_

He turned her to the right, his eyes glowing in the silvery moonlight as he doted on her. His warm hand cupped her cheek, wiping away the remnants of her tears with a thumb. The rareness of Kaiba’s loving sensitivity tripped her up as it did time and again; she couldn’t prevent the smile that touched her lips. 

“Of course I forgive you, Seto. What kind of wife would I be if I didn’t?”

As he kissed her, all thoughts of the strange shadow across the moon disappeared in a swirl of misty vapor. 

* * *

_“Rachel….”_

Rachel started awake, eyes snapping open. The voice had been soft, but right in her ear. She turned her head to the left, expecting to see Kaiba awake and waiting expectantly for her to respond. However, her husband was on his side, back turned to her and sleeping soundly. 

Sighing, she pushed herself to a sitting position. A deep soreness throbbed in her chest; she ran a hand lightly over her bare breasts. After the explosive argument they had earlier, Kaiba had made it up to her with an extremely passionate round of lovemaking. It had been a little rougher than she expected; she could feel the tender bruising on her neck and breasts already rising, but something about the pain in her chest was off. It wasn’t connected with everything else.

 _“Rachel!”_

Rachel’s spine tingled; she pulled away from the disembodied voice –clear as day and now on her right - eyes straining in the darkness, searching for something she knew in her heart wasn’t there. Chilled, she turned to Kaiba and grabbed his shoulder, shaking him gently.

“Seto, wake up.” He remained fast asleep, breathing deeply and quietly. Frowning, she shook him harder. “ _Seto_!” 

Kaiba remained asleep, only rousing long enough to knock her hand away before burying his face in his pillow and snoring. 

The hair on the back of her neck stood, the feeling of someone watching her creeping up her arms and back. Rachel hugged herself, casting her gaze across the bedroom, hoping to find something that would explain why this soft, female voice had come to her twice now. She knew it wasn’t a dream; the shock of hearing it the first time had been enough to jolt her from sleep completely. 

_Perhaps it was one of Seto’s staff talking about me in the corridor? Maybe it was a notification from Seto’s phone?_ The more Rachel worked through her rationalizations the more unreasonable they became, sinking her heart into her stomach in dread. She didn’t want to believe in the paranormal, but it was quickly becoming the only explanation she had left. 

Her trembling right hand clung desperately to the pearl necklace. Another deep throb of pain spread across her chest and into her breasts.

_“Don’t be afraid.”_

Rachel’s terrified squeal was finally enough to rouse her husband from slumber; Kaiba shot to a sitting position, blinking the sleep out of his eyes and looking frantically around the room before settling his gaze on her. When she met his eyes, the sensation of being watched immediately retreated. 

“Rachel! What’s wrong?!” He cried, grabbing her upper arm and staring at her intently. 

She shook her head, loose russet curls falling across her shoulders. “I-I heard a voice…it said my name twice, but I didn’t see anyone…”

Concern narrowed his eyes, his grip relaxing just a bit. “Were you dreaming?” 

Rachel vehemently shook her head this time. “No. I heard it plain as day, like I hear you right now. It sounded like a girl.” 

“A _girl_?” His expression grew skeptical as he ran a hand through his tousled hair. “Honey, are you _sure_ you weren’t dreaming?” 

She stared at him incredulously. “Seto, I _wasn’t_ dreaming. I know what I heard, and it freaked me out!” 

Kaiba sighed. He rolled onto his left elbow, reaching to his cell phone on the nightstand and scrolling up Kaiba-Templar Security’s communication line. Roland’s face immediately popped up on the screen; Rachel did her best to cover herself with the fluffy comforter in case the head of security could see her. 

“Mr. Kaiba, is there a problem?” Roland asked, voice hard with concern. 

“Lady Kaiba said she heard a voice in our bedroom,” Kaiba replied. “It sounded female to her. I want you to do a security sweep of our wing, as well as our room and the grounds surrounding this end of the estate. If there are any female staff working this wing tonight, bring them in for questioning. If there’s a confession, have that employee terminated immediately for waking up my wife. Do you understand?”

Roland nodded. “Right away, Mr. Kaiba. Roland out.” 

When the connection was severed and the screen went black, Kaiba put the phone back on the nightstand and turned to look at her. “Satisfied?” 

A little unnerved that he still seemed to disbelieve her, Rachel pursed her lips and nodded. Brushing her curls over her shoulder she threw off the comforter, rising from the bed and heading to the walk-in closet on the far side of the room. “I suppose. At least it’ll make me feel better if something is found.” 

Kaiba also rose from the bed, coming to the closet and plucking a white terrycloth robe from the hanger closest to the door. As he threw it over his shoulders and tied the sash at his waist he put a hand on her shoulder. 

“Are you sure you’re all right?” 

Rachel nodded, likewise pulling a robe from her side of the closet and tugging it closed around her shoulders. She was still unnerved by the voice; it had startled her, sure, but it was so…familiar to her that she didn’t feel threatened by it. She met Kaiba’s eyes; something in the pit of her stomach relaxed as she gazed at him. It was enough to bring a self-deprecating smile to her lips. 

“You must think I’m crazy,” she said.

He didn’t move. “No, I don’t. If you think you heard something, I believe you.” His expression turned worried. “I still don’t like how all this is happening after your sickness. It’s starting to scare me.” 

Rachel shrugged. “The lab gave me a clean bill of health, other than the blood test results; and those should be on my desk in the morning.” She ran a hand down his arm affectionately. “Don’t stress yourself about it, Seto. I’m all right.” 

Kaiba nodded, though he didn’t look convinced. “We’ll see about that.” When a soft knock came at their door, he took her hand and led her out of the closet. “Come on, we have an early day tomorrow. Let’s get a drink while they check the room.”


	6. The Duelist Elite

When the limo pulled up in front of the Kaiba Estate at 8am sharp, a flicker of nervousness rippled through Yugi’s chest. He stared at his reflection in the window as the vehicle rolled through the gates and up the drive toward the pillared portico. When it rounded the curve of the paved drive, Yugi found Kaiba standing in the direct center of the pillars, hands behind his back and a blank expression on his face. 

Even thought it had been seven years since the last time their rivalry had held the spotlight, it was hard to miss the fire that still burned deep inside Kaiba. Yugi had hoped things had truly changed; after defeating Diva together, their relationship had become one of mutual trust. Kaiba had even invited Yugi to his satellite installation a few times for a no-stakes match – “exercise”, he called it. When Rachel entered his life, Yugi was almost certain that Kaiba was rid of his old self once and for all. 

But dinner last night had proven otherwise. The passion and rage were still very much alive inside Kaiba, even if they were far more subdued than what they once were. What had been a thrilling prospect to begin with had turned sour when the flames of jealousy had been fanned. 

_And Rachel_ …Yugi lowered his eyes as Kaiba approached the limo from the stairs. Something had been altogether different about her at dinner. She was beautiful as always, kind as always – but something was off. 

Yugi placed a palm over his heart. Since Atem had left him, he had felt like an empty shell for the longest time. Life had nearly held no meaning for him, forcing him into an early retirement from Duel Monsters just when he had reached the top of the world with it. There was still some residual energy from the Pharaoh left over him in – some thoughts, images and feelings attested to that – but it wasn’t enough to fill the void that had been left behind when the Pharaoh’s spirit had departed. However, during the almost-deadly duel with Diva, Atem had returned for the briefest of moments to give Yugi the strength he needed to win the fight. When he left, he took the Millennium Puzzle with him to prevent its use in the mortal world again.

However, not everything had been taken. Atem also took with him the Plana, which was the power source behind Diva’s evil magic. But he didn’t eradicate it completely. He had granted some of the power to Yugi, to use if and when it was necessary. _To guide you on your path_ , Atem had told him, just before he left forever. 

Yugi let his eyes fall closed, taking a deep breath. He focused his thoughts on Rachel, quieting his mind of everything else. 

_Rachel’s energy is different. There’s something else there._

His eyes snapped open as the passenger door on the opposite side opened. Kaiba slipped into the seat beside him, shutting the door and signaling to Roland, who was driving. As the vehicle began to pull away from the portico, Yugi dropped his hands into his lap and turned to Kaiba. 

“Where’s Rachel?”

Kaiba sniffed indifferently, gaze remaining forward. “She had something to do before everything started.”

Yugi swallowed. “Are you guys….okay?” 

“We’re fine.” 

The bite in his tone told Yugi otherwise, but he kept his mouth firmly shut. He cast his gaze out the window as the limo turned onto the main road, picking up speed to keep up with the rest of the traffic. His thoughts turned inward again, not toward the faint light of the Plana but of what he had heard from it. Rachel’s energy is different. What did that mean? Yugi found himself worrying about her; Rachel Pendragon had unearthed the goodness in Seto Kaiba’s heart and pinned it to his sleeve, giving the world the perspective on the Kaiba name it really needed. He felt something of a debt of gratitude to her, for pulling someone he considered a friend out of the dark hole he had been trapped in.

_Maybe I should tell Kaiba…_

When he turned, he found Kaiba pulling off the black leather gloves he had been wearing and setting them on his lap. He pressed a button on the door panel, and the seat between them flipped back to reveal a small bottle of scotch and two tumblers filled with ice. Kaiba took one of the glasses and the scotch bottle, pouring the honey-colored liquid over the ice. 

“Scotch?” he asked, finally making eye contact with Yugi. He looked exhausted. 

“Sure,” Yugi said, lifting up the other glass as Kaiba poured. When Kaiba returned the bottle to the center console, he lifted his glass in a quick toast before draining the alcohol in one swallow. 

Yugi stared at him, slowly swirling the contents of his glass as Kaiba poured himself another. 

“Kaiba….are you all right?”

Kaiba sighed. “I’m just tired. We had a long night last night.” 

Yugi pressed his lips together. “Rachel?” 

Kaiba nodded. When he turned to Yugi again, Yugi was shocked to see raw emotion plain on his face. His brow was drawn into a concerned frown, icy eyes darkened by the shadow of his bangs. “I’m worried about her. She got sick during opening ceremonies, and since then she hasn’t been the same. Not only has she been irritable and reclusive, but….she’s been hearing voices and seeing people that aren’t there.” 

Yugi’s eyebrows rose. “She’s been hallucinating? That’s serious, Kaiba – she needs to see a doctor!” 

“Don’t you think I _know_ that?” Kaiba snapped, sneering. After a moment the sneer disappeared. “Besides, she already went – they gave her a clean bill of health. There’s just some blood tests we’re waiting on to be certain it isn’t something else.” 

_Rachel’s energy is different. There’s something else there._ “What do you think could have caused it? The stunt from the opening ceremonies?” 

Kaiba shrugged, turning his gaze out his own window. “That’s what we thought at first, but it doesn’t seem likely. I made sure the equipment we used was tested; no one else got sick but Rachel.”

Yugi paused to take a drink of the scotch. It burned his throat going down, reminding him why he didn’t drink often. But it served to help briefly take his mind off their conversation. 

_He needs to know…tell him…._

Yugi took another quick swallow, burning away the last of his nervousness. “Kaiba, something about her is off.” 

Kaiba whirled on him. “ _What_?” 

Yugi sighed. “I know how you feel about ‘hocus-pocus’, but…that day when we defeated Diva, Atem came to me one last time after Diva sent you to the Shadow Realm. He…he gave me a part of the power that Diva was using, the Plana.” He took another drink of scotch. “It’s like a heightened sense of awareness, really. And when I thought about Rachel earlier…it told me that something was different about her energy.”

Kaiba stared at him. Skepticism was plain on his face, but his eyes shone with desperation. 

“What do you mean, Muto?”

Yugi shrugged. “I-I’m honestly not sure, Kaiba. It was just something I heard. I don’t know what it means, but I thought you might want to know.” 

Kaiba sighed heavily, turning his attention back out the window. Yugi lowered his eyes to the remaining scotch in his glass. For some reason he felt terrible; informing Kaiba of his wife’s anomaly should have felt relieving and helpful, but instead it only caused him to worry more. He put his tumbler down in the center console, clasping Kaiba’s shoulder gently. 

“Kaiba – I’ll help you any way I can. If it will put your mind at ease.” 

Yugi expected Kaiba to slap his hand away, or retaliate with a vicious remark. Surprise got the best of him when Kaiba turned, blue eyes cold but jaw set in determination. It was the closest thing Yugi had ever seen to gratitude in him. 

“I’d do anything to help my wife; even if it means putting up with hearing about mystical nonsense again.” He sighed through his nose, turning his attention once again to the window as the limo reached the back entrance to Kaiba Land. “So long as there’s something useful this power of yours can do I’m all ears, Yugi.” 

Yugi squeezed Kaiba’s shoulder. “I’ll do what I can.” When the limo parked, he reached for the brown satchel between his legs on the floor. “For now, we have a show to put on.” 

The rest of their journey proceeded in silence. Kaiba led the way into the employee entrance of the Kaiba Land duel stadium, Yugi following as closely as he dared. He did what he could to clear his thoughts of the situation with Rachel, which bore down on him like a weight hanging from his neck. _Everything will be fine – you can deal with it later. Right now, you need to focus. Kaiba is going to do what he can to take you down in this exhibition match, and you have to put up a good fight. The tournament’s entertainment value is counting on that._

Yugi felt his shoulders relax, the mental weight slowly lifting from them as the faint sounds of cheering from the stadium made their way through the service tunnels they were traveling. His pulse quickened; for the first time in a long time, he felt alive and invigorated. It had been so long since he had dueled he had forgotten what it felt like – the adrenaline, the head rush, the passion. He hitched the satchel higher onto his shoulder, doing his best to smother a smile. He had to admit to himself that he was excited to be back in the game. 

_And hopefully for a good cause._

Kaiba turned right down another service tunnel, the cheering growing closer and louder. At the end of the tunnel was a large metal door. The keypad on the right resembled a miniature chess board; Yugi frowned at it as Kaiba moved the knight piece in a position that created a checkmate with the king piece. The door’s hydraulics hissed, releasing the lock as it slid to the side. Behind it was a large room with a few leather sofas and tables scattered about. Several monitors lined the room, projecting images of the massive crowd that had packed themselves into the oval stadium. 

“Put your stuff anywhere,” Kaiba said. Roland, having followed them from the limo, took Kaiba's black overcoat as he shrugged it off in exchange for the familiar studded white coat he seemed to favor. Yugi tossed his satchel on one of the sofas, pulling open the side flap and grabbing his Duel Monster deck from the pouch. When he had secured it to his belt, he looked back up to see Kaiba sliding back a panel in the wall to reveal a small storage case. When he turned around he was holding two of the new Kaiba-Templar duel disks in his hands. They appeared like elbow-length fingerless gloves, but with glowing readouts that kept track of vital signs, brainwave activity, and other information. On the side was an attachment that somewhat resembled the first duel disks produced by Kaiba Corp, but on a much smaller scale. 

Kaiba held one out to him. “This is the latest model of Duel Disk on the market,” he said, slipping his over his left arm. The glowing readouts flashed, indicating his heart rate, oxygen level, and brainwaves. After slipping his deck into the slot on the side, he pointed to a small crystalline orb that slowly blinked near the top. “It’s directly connected to the Crystal Cloud Network, which translates the cards in your deck into virtual reality projections that appear when you wear the VR glasses.” From inside his coat he produced a pair of the ‘glasses’; they were more like visors, a complete metal ring that covered the eyes and circled around the head. 

Yugi took his items cautiously. “This is an amazing leap from last time, Kaiba.” He looked up. “How did you do it?” 

Kaiba smirked. “Surprisingly, this is one piece of tech that _I_ didn’t create.” He unsnapped the visor. “Rachel did.” 

Yugi slipped the glove over his left arm, activating the vital readouts and Crystal Cloud hookup. A tingle went up and down his arm as the sensors monitored his pulse and oxygen levels with small electric discharges. He snapped his deck into the deck slot, and prepared to put the visor over his head. 

“Mr. Kaiba,” Roland said suddenly. Yugi looked up, finding the security guard pointing at one of the monitors. “It’s Lady Kaiba – she’s coming in the south entrance.” 

Kaiba’s smile was completely genuine. “I’m glad she made it. Inform her that we are in the ready room and are waiting for her.”

As Roland fulfilled his orders, Kaiba stood to his full height and looked at Yugi down his nose. “Are you ready for this, Yugi?” 

Yugi’s heart warmed, a smile crossing his lips. “As ready as I’ll ever be. It’ll be great to knock off the dust and duel you again, Kaiba.” 

Kaiba’s smile tightened, but remained friendly. “Indeed.”


	7. High Expectations

Rachel stared at her visitor, a sudden flood of random emotion hitting her like debris in a hurricane. Her chest hurt from her heart pounding so hard. She pressed a hand to her sternum, licking suddenly dry lips. Her eyes were unable to blink, working hard to stay in focus. 

“You’re _sure_ these results are mine?” She asked again for the fifth time. 

The Kaiba-Templar lab tech flashed Rachel a sympathetic look, spreading her hands. “Yes, Lady Kaiba, I’m certain. We’ve taken no other blood tests since yours yesterday.” She clasped her hands at her waist, attempting a weak smile. “It is impossible to mistake results like those.”

Rachel didn’t realize that she had been holding her breath until her lungs began to burn. She released a slow, shaky exhale, her mind clouding over with a fog that wiped all thoughts blank. Her eyes dropped to the test results that plagued the top of her desk. She had gone to the Kaiba-Templar office early to sign off on the last of the financial reports for the tournament. Everything had gone smoothly, and she had been packing her things to leave for the opening duel of Kaiba against Yugi Muto when she was approached by the lab tech. 

_I can’t believe it. How am I going to tell Seto?_

Rachel didn’t realize the lab tech was speaking to her until the tech cleared her throat noisily. She snapped her head up. “I’m sorry?”

“I was saying _congratulations_ , Lady Kaiba.” The tech smiled briefly. “Is there anything else I can do for you?” 

Rachel shook her head, a lump growing in her throat. “N-No…thank you.”

The lab tech bowed, turning on her heel and leaving the office. When her footsteps faded into the distance down the corridor, the dam holding back Rachel’s emotions exploded. She fell back into her chair, tears flooding her eyes and an ill-defined yelp escaping her throat. She pressed a trembling hand to her mouth, her entire body quaking like a broken agitator in a washing machine. There was no clear emotion that took hold in her; she was both happy then sad, angry then calm, nervous then excited. It was so overwhelming that she couldn’t even move. 

_I’m pregnant._

It was impossible. It had to be. She was on birth control, and hadn’t missed a single day. Yet the test lay right before her, a positive result plain as day for all to see. There was no discernible reason for the lab tech to lie to her about it. It wasn’t an illusion or a fraud – it was cold, hard reality. 

_At least it explains the hallucinations and sickness_. Rachel knew next to nothing about the motherhood condition, but she could guess that strange things occurred alongside changes in the body. Her thoughts drifted back to the woman she saw in the bathroom and the voice she heard last night, and somehow she was relieved. 

Still, her stomach twisted into a knot. It did nothing to change the fact that she was about to experience the most profound change in her life. She gently pressed a palm against her still-flat abdomen, taking a deep breath. 

_I’m going to be a mother. Seto is going to be a father. We’re going to have a child._

Rachel lifted her eyes to the clock beside her door and swore; it was five minutes to 8am. Doing her best to swallow the emotional pressure building in her heart, she gathered her things and slung her coat over her shoulders. She considered the results one last time before abandoning them on the desk and leaving the office. She didn’t need them to prove herself to Kaiba – he would believe her.

Worry suddenly gripped her heart, slowing her pace toward the elevator banks. How was he going to take the news? Did he even want children? The topic rarely came up in conversations between them, and when it had it was glanced over with barely a sentence on how either of them felt about it. Rachel wasn’t even entirely sure she was ready, but given the circumstances she didn’t necessarily have a choice. With how Kaiba felt about orphans it wasn’t likely that he would accept abortion or adoption, and neither would she. They would just have to learn together how to come to terms with it.

When she had finally left the building, the drive to Kaiba Land felt like it took years. Her thoughts continued to whirl around in her head, not making any sense or coming together cohesively at all. The Kaiba-Templar driver pulled around the back side of the amusement park’s oval dueling stadium, dropping her off at the south employee entrance. She brushed the wrinkles out of her pencil skirt when she approached the door, sliding her key card for access and continuing into the service tunnels that led toward the stadium’s heart. When she was about halfway through her phone rang. 

She forced herself to smile as the screen dissolved into Roland’s thin face. “Roland, what can I do for you?” 

“Lady Kaiba, Mr. Kaiba and Mr. Muto are waiting for you in the ready room on Access Tunnel B,” the head of security replied. “Shall I come escort you?”

“No, thank you, I’m close by,” she replied, fighting to keep the shuddering out of her voice. Her heart skipped a beat. “I’ll be there in less than a minute. Rachel out.” She didn’t wait for a response before shutting down the video call and slipping the phone back into her purse. Her stomach erupted with butterflies when she turned down Access Tunnel B, approaching the large metal door at the end. When she arrived her nerves overwhelmed her, bringing her up short of completing the door lock puzzle. Instead she leaned against the cool metallic plate, letting her eyes fall closed. 

Rachel’s chest tightened despite her steady breathing, like a logjam starting to break up. Excitement and nervousness battled in the pit of her stomach for dominance. Her husband was just beyond the door, waiting for her. She could faintly hear his deep voice, which turned her stomach even more.  
  
_Don’t be afraid_. 

Taking solace in the strange voice’s advice from last night, Rachel took one last deep breath and pushed herself off the door. Moving the knight piece of the door lock’s chess puzzle to checkmate the king, she tensed as the door slid open with a hiss of hydraulics. 

Across the room, making last minute adjustments to the duel disk glove on his arm, Kaiba turned to regard her. She winced; her face must have been a mess of distress, because the smile he had been wearing evaporated. 

“Rachel! Are you feeling okay?” he asked, striding toward her. 

_Seto’s going to be a father_ …. Losing control of her composure, Rachel dropped her purse on the ground and flung herself into his arms. Hot tears pushed themselves out of her eyes as she buried her face into his chest, pulling him tight against her. A sob escaped her throat. 

“Rachel,” he consoled her gently, stroking her back. “Sweetheart, what’s the matter?!”

Mustering all the strength she could, Rachel pulled away from his chest and locked his worried azure gaze. She swallowed. 

“I got the blood test results back. While I was at the office.” 

His brow furrowed, eyes darkening. His grip around her waist tightened. “What did it say?”

“Seto…..” She swallowed again, past the lump in her throat that tried to prevent her from speaking. “I’m pregnant.”

The color drained from his face, leaving him white as a sheet. He released her, taking a half-step back and staring at her with disbelief etched all over his features. “H-How can that be?” he stammered, voice tight. His fists clenched at his sides. “That’s _impossible_ – you’re on birth control.” 

She sympathized with the shock. She had gone through it herself only a few minutes prior. A shrug lifted her shoulders. “I-I don’t know, Seto.”

“There’s must be a mistake,” Kaiba remarked, more to himself than to her. He shook his head. “They must have mixed your tests with someone else.” 

She shook her head. “No, it’s not a mistake. They haven’t taken anyone’s blood but mine since yesterday.” She bit her lower lip, spreading her hands. “It’s the truth.”  
With obvious effort, Kaiba struggled with himself. He passed a trembling hand through his thick brown hair, releasing a heavy sigh. The vital readouts on his duel disk shot through the roof, so much so that a soft alarm began to chime from the Crystal Cloud connection device near the top. Ignoring it, he turned his back on her and continued to adjust his equipment. 

When it was clear he wasn’t planning to resume the conversation, Rachel’s blood turned to ice. She didn’t know what sort of reaction she had expected out of him, but it certainly hadn’t been a cold shoulder. She was rooted to the spot like a tree, unable to take her eyes from his back. A frown burned into her forehead. 

“Seto--”

“Roland, stay here with Rachel,” Kaiba cut her off, snapping the VR visor over his head. His blue gaze remained riveted to the duel disk he fiddled with. “Call Mokuba and have him come as well. My family is to be kept comfortable at all times, do you understand me?” 

Roland swallowed, sparing a glance at Rachel before nodding. “Yes, Mr. Kaiba.” 

Kaiba turned his steely gaze on Yugi. “Yugi, are you ready?” 

Yugi, whom Rachel had only just realized had been standing nearby the entire time, glared at her husband angrily. “Kaiba, don’t you think—“

“We have a show to put on, Muto – are you coming or not?” Kaiba snapped, voice cold and hard like it had been when Rachel had first met him. Not waiting for a response, he whirled on his heel, the hem of his white coat twisting around his knees as he headed for the door. Without so much as a glance, he passed her by with nothing more than the swish of fabric and whisper of wind. In seconds, he had disappeared into the access tunnel. 

Rachel went numb. She had no idea what had happened. Despite the fear and confusion that normally came with such an announcement, she had at least expected him to show some sort of human emotion, perhaps even a glimmer of happiness. But there had been nothing there; he had shut down completely, becoming the old Kaiba she had worked so hard to break through to. There was no love, no fear, no confusion – just cold, brutal emptiness that ripped her heart in half. 

Yugi’s hand on her shoulder spurred her; she turned to find his violet eyes glazed and sympathetic, searching her face. “Rachel….are you going to be all right?” he asked, though he sounded less than certain. 

Hot tears poured uncontrollably out of her eyes. She did her best to press her trembling lips together, to keep her composure together. Kaiba’s footsteps disappeared into the distance behind her. “I……….”

“Mr. Muto, please follow Mr. Kaiba to the arena,” Roland cut in, taking a step toward them. Though his order was firm, his voice was soft. “The duel is about to begin.” He nodded. “I’ll take care of Lady Kaiba until the match is finished.” 

Yugi stared at her a moment longer before he nodded. His hand squeezed her shoulder tightly.

“Everything will be all right, Rachel. I promise. I’ll talk to him.” He planted a swift kiss on her forehead, cupping her cheek in his hand and giving her a brief – if worried – smile before moving around her and following after Kaiba. 

When Yugi was gone, the door sliding shut behind him, Rachel felt herself come apart at the seams. The world spun around in a blur, pain both physical and emotional squeezing her like a vice. When her head stopped spinning she realized she had ended up on one of the leather sofas facing the bank of monitors on the wall, Roland holding her tight in one arm and speaking urgently into his phone with his free hand. Though her ears were ringing, she was dimly aware that the security agent was giving her words of encouragement and comfort. 

_What went wrong? What happened?_

_Don’t be afraid_ , the soft female voice spoke up from somewhere inside her chest, a sudden calm blanketing her roiling mind. Warmth spread from the pit of her stomach throughout her body, clearing the numbness from her limbs. _Give me your troubles. Let go._

The voice should have startled her, but it was so comforting that Rachel couldn’t help but relax into it. All thoughts of Kaiba, the tournament, her pregnancy and her emotions began to subside. Taking a deep breath, letting the doubts and concerns slip away from her into the warmth the voice offered, she let go and drifted into a deep, therapeutic sleep.


	8. A Losing Battle

“Kaiba!” 

Seto ignored Yugi’s angry shout and pounding footsteps closing behind him. He pressed forward, taking a sharp turn around the corner into Access Tunnel A toward the roaring of the impatient crowd in the stadium ahead. Though his legs and lungs burned, he knew he couldn’t stop walking. If he did, what fragile control he had left over his inner turmoil would shatter. 

_I’m pregnant._ Hearing the words from Rachel’s mouth had stunned him badly. He had tried to remain calm, to rationalize the sudden chill that gripped his heart, but his nasty habit of self-preservation had come back to haunt him. He had shut down, slamming an iron cage around his heart and locking her out as best he could. He wasn’t angry or upset with _her_ at all - he was terrified of _himself_. 

_Gozaburo had been a father too. You learned everything you know from him._

Seto swallowed, physically trying to squash the pain in his heart. The thought had come on so quickly, the quiet feeling of guilt and shame taking hold of him like a hand tightening around his throat, that the only thing he could do was walk away. All the things he had done through the years before he met Rachel came back to him in that moment; heavy-handed deals, lies, false accusations and imprisonments. Even death. He thought he had put it all behind him, had learned to overcome it, but now that he was faced with raising a child of his own it all came crashing back down on him.

And yet, at the same time, there was a fresh excitement underlying the terror. Excitement of a type he had only felt once before, in a past he had long since forgotten; when he had found out he was going to be a big brother. But this time it was different. He was not going to be an older sibling – he was going to be a father, a true parent to a flesh-and-blood baby of his own. 

_I can’t do it. I can’t let it become like me._

“KAIBA!” 

A hand wound around the flapping hem of his coat, dragging him to a stop just before the tunnel’s end. Just beyond was the stage surrounded by screaming, cheering fans. Seto tried to press forward, but another sharp yank on his coat brought him around. 

Yugi’s violet eyes were ablaze with something he had never seen there before – rage. 

“Kaiba, just what in the _hell_ do you think you’re doing?!” Yugi growled, flinging the hem of Seto’s coat into his chest. He gestured wildly to the empty tunnel behind them. “Did you not hear a goddamn word Rachel said to you back there?!”

Seto brushed his coat back into place, staring at Yugi. His mouth went dry. 

“I heard what she said.”

Yugi frowned. “Then why don’t you go back to her?” 

It was a valid question, one he had been screaming to himself the moment he had left the ready room. He exhaled slowly. 

“I can’t.” 

Yugi cursed sharply, throwing his arms wide in shock. “She’s PREGNANT, Kaiba. She _needs_ you!!” He turned his fiery gaze back on Seto. “And all you can think about is this fucking tournament!” 

Seto fought hard to control the anger that threatened to rise above all else in his chest. Yugi didn’t understand; he never would. Gozaburo Kaiba, his adoptive father, had been hateful, vicious and destructive. Everything he did was a means to an end that served only him, using Seto and Mokuba when his own son Noah failed to bring him glory. He was willing to gain those means by putting Seto through Hell and back, torturing the love and decency out of him to create a cold, ruthless machine that would do anything to achieve his own goals. Even though, on some purely practical level, that efficiency had been what saved Seto and his little brother from a life of destitution, it was still not justification enough for him to potentially revert to those ways on his own child. 

_And sweet Rachel…she doesn’t deserve that either._

“Call it what you will, Muto,” he finally replied, voice cracked from the dryness of his throat. He crossed his arms, staring down at his competitor. “I have my reasons, and I sure as hell don’t need to explain myself to you.”

Yugi lunged forward, grabbing the lapels of his coat and dragging him down to eye level with a ferocity that caught Seto off guard. Their noses were inches from each other, so close that he could feel the vibration of Yugi’s voice in his face. 

“You selfish son of a _bitch_ ,” Yugi spat. He shook Seto roughly, nearly setting him off balance. “You’re going to _abandon_ your pregnant wife?! Just like that?!”

Seto’s own rage flared; his right arm shot out, grasping a handful of Yugi’s buttoned collar and pushing him back to arm’s length. The insatiable desire to wrap his fingers around the little man’s throat burned him alive, but he just managed to hold it in check. 

“I’m _NOT_ abandoning Rachel,” he growled, dragging Yugi in close and lifting him up in such a way that he was forced to stand on his toes to avoid being choked. Once he felt the message had sunk in he released Yugi’s collar. “Don’t you dare say those fucking words again.” In a momentary lull of the crowd’s cheering, Seto’s vital sign monitor’s alarm began chiming once more. He turned away, batting at the stupid device to get it to shut up. 

A long moment of silence drew out between them, punctuated only by the ebb and flow of the cheering crowd and the insistent chiming of Seto’s duel disk alarm. 

“Then what _are_ you doing, Kaiba?” Yugi’s voice was decidedly softer, perhaps even sad. When Seto shifted his attention back, he saw that tears had flooded his rival’s eyes. It was almost enough to break him free of the iron cage he had imprisoned himself in. 

Seto shook his head, completely at a loss for the first time in a long time. He tightened his face, refusing to let it show. 

“I don’t know, Yugi. I just know I can’t go back.” He bit the inside of his cheek in an effort to stop his own tears from forming. “I _can’t_ be a father, not after what I’ve been through.” He turned away, failing at holding his tears in check. “Rachel deserves better.”

“Kaiba…” Yugi sighed. “Rachel _married_ you. She, of all people in your life, understands you and loves you for who you are. When she walked in that room she expected you to share in her happiness, in the fact that you both _created life_ together.” A hand on his arm turned him; Yugi’s cheeks were stained with tears, eyes imploring. “Don’t you think she at least deserves to know _why_ this is happening?” 

Seto heard the Pharaoh plain as day in those words, and it instantly shattered him. He gripped Yugi’s arm in turn, to try and stop the trembling that had taken up in his entire body. He pursed his lips, fighting a losing battle against the tears that threatened to burn themselves out of his eyes. He could hear Gozaburo’s voice in the back of his mind, taunting him for letting his weakness show. 

_Love is weakness, Seto. Get rid of it._

_NO._

“Come on,” he finally managed to grind out, straightening up and running a hand through his hair. He released Yugi’s arm. “We have a duel to get through.” 

Yugi’s expression turned dark. “Kaiba, no – you don’t have to do this. You can go back and explain—“

“Yugi,” Seto interrupted him, keeping his voice calm. He turned an imploring look on his rival. If he didn’t carry on with his plan, more than just his composure would crumble. He needed to press on, to give himself the chance to reconcile his inner conflict before facing Rachel again. He attempted to convey that in his expression. “We need to do this. You’ll never understand it, but I _need_ to do this my own way.” He dropped his gaze. “Please.” 

A heavy sigh escaped Yugi’s throat. His eyes fluttered closed for a long pause, and after a moment they opened. His jaw set in grim determination with a nod. 

“All right, Kaiba. Just… _promise_ me you’ll talk to Rachel after all this is over.” 

Seto nodded once, keeping silent as the two legendary duelists strode onto the platform amidst a sea of screams and adoration that Seto felt he no longer deserved. 

* * *

“High Priest.” 

Annoyed, Nicodemus pulled himself from his meditation, dragging open his eyes to stare at the hooded Sanctified kneeling before him. He was less annoyed with the interruption than he was with his fruitless endeavor to find the missing Blue-Eyes White Dragon, but the follower didn’t need to know that. He sighed heavily.

“What is it?”

“Seto Kaiba’s tournament is underway, priest. The opening duel is between he and Yugi Muto.” The follower paused to audibly swallow. “We thought you might find that of importance.”

_Interesting_. It had been years since the vessel of Atem had come out of the woodwork for a Duel Monster’s tournament; some might even have been bold enough to think the Pharaoh was the true King of Games, not the Muto boy. As frivolous as Kaiba’s tournaments were, pulling a stunt like that might bear some eventual significance.

“Are our brothers in Domino reporting everything they see?” 

The follower nodded, hood swishing further down over his shadowed face. “Nothing unusual has occurred beyond Yugi Muto’s sudden involvement. Though we were told that both Kaiba and Muto appeared under great stress when they took the arena moments ago.” 

“Not unusual for performing under the eyes of the world, but interesting nonetheless,” Nicodemus remarked. He flipped his wrist. “Tell our sources to watch for any other changes in behavior, and to remain in close contact.” 

The follower rose to his feet, bowing himself out of the meditation chamber. When he was alone again, Nicodemus forced himself to push all thoughts aside and concentrate once more on attempting to locate the Ka of the Blue-Eyes. He spread his awareness as far as he could, sending feelers through the cities and streets of every country in the world. Despite his best efforts, there was no sign of Kisara at all; it was as if she had simply vanished from this plane of existence. Each time he thought he got close, what felt like a blindfold slapped itself over his eyes. 

_You’re able to hide from me now, Kisara, but soon I will find you. Lord Apophis will devour you, and he WILL be resurrected. You can’t run forever, slave._

Frustrated he growled in anger, pulling himself off the floor of the meditation chamber and exiting in flash of rage. The longer it took to find her, the weaker Apophis grew. Sustaining the great serpent’s energy was becoming more and more difficult, despite the souls of the ancient beasts he had consumed already. Sacrifices helped, but even they had begun to lose their potency. He had to do something fast, or he would lose the only chance to release Apophis from his fiery prison in the Duat. 

_That won’t happen. Not while I’m alive_. He would find a way. He had no choice. One way or another, he would find Kisara and sacrifice her to bring about the end of the filthy, vile place the universe had become.


	9. Dueling Emotions: Part One

For the first time since leaving the ready room, Yugi realized that he was numb. When Rachel had broken the news of her newly discovered pregnancy to Kaiba - and the adverse reaction Kaiba had to it - anger and confusion had fueled him to chase after his long-time rival and demand answers. Now, despite standing in the blazing spring sunlight amidst a sea of screaming fans, Yugi found himself unable to process much of anything. 

And if it was this bad for _him_ , he couldn’t begin to imagine how Kaiba was still standing. 

The pain in his rival’s eyes had been consumed by an almost feral type of desperation, a survival instinct that had been Kaiba’s comfort zone since Yugi had known him. While Kaiba said he had his own personal reasons to justify his reaction to Rachel’s announcement, it was obviously draining him. His gait, normally proud, was slow and unsteady as he moved across the arena from Yugi. The roaring sonance of the crowd bore down on them both, but it seemed to physically pull Kaiba down by the shoulders. They sagged as he turned, facing Yugi from his end of the arena. Though distance blurred Yugi’s vision, there was no mistaking the sunken sorrow of Kaiba’s blue eyes. 

_Kaiba…_

“Welcome, duelists, to the opening exhibition battle of the first ever Kaiba-Templar world tournament!” Kaiba declared into the microphone attached to the lapel of his coat. His tone was monotonous and dull; clearly his heart was anywhere but the duel. He raised his arms above his head, taking in the entire stadium. “You’re standing witness to one of the greatest moments in Duel Monsters history,” he lowered his arms, gesturing to Yugi, “the return – and subsequent defeat – of the King of Games, Yugi Muto!” 

The uproar of the crowd was deafening. Yugi watched Kaiba closely as he ran his open palm over the Crystal Cloud sensor hub at the top of his duel disk, activating it with a suffused yellow glow. Without further ado, he continued, “Let’s get this over with!” 

Heavy-hearted, Yugi activated his own duel disk and pulled the VR visor down over his eyes. 

When the darkness cleared, Yugi was still standing in the stadium, but faint green gridlines had overlaid themselves across the arena. A large, glowing set of life points rose above Kaiba’s head, scaling up to 8000. At the top left of Yugi’s vision, bars indicating his heart rate and oxygen level flickered to life. To the top right were his own life points. The deck slot in his duel disk activated, glowing a faint violet color; five cards shot from the top of the deck and into his hand. Adding in cacophony of the crowd from the stadium, it felt like he was in some sort of video game.

Across the arena, Kaiba’s duel disk shone a cobalt blue, five cards springing into his hand as well. He nodded to Yugi, sharp jaw set in determination. 

“You first, Yugi. Let’s see if the heart of the cards nonsense still works for you.” 

Ignoring the jab, Yugi pulled a card from the top of his deck. It was Graceful Charity. He held it out, watching it disappear from his fingers in a shower of sparks and reappear within the gridlines of his backfield on the arena before him. “First, I play Graceful Charity,” he declared, watching the card come to life as an angelic being. She held her arms out to him, offering him three cards. They floated from her hands to his outstretched one; grasping them, he brought them to his face for inspection. 

_Magician’s Rod, Kuribandit and Magician of Dark Illusion – I can work with this_. In exchange, he slipped two cards out of his hand and tossed them toward the angel. She took them from the air, disappearing in a puff of white smoke that coiled toward the card graveyard on his right. “I draw three cards and discard two – Electromagnetic Turtle and Magician Navigation.” He pulled Magician’s Rod from his fingers, spinning it toward his monster zone. “Then, I summon Magician’s Rod to the field in defense position!” 

As the floating purple and magenta rod appeared on his field, Kaiba’s lips turned up in a sneer. “A Magician’s Rod?” He spread his hands, scoffing. “Where’s the Magician, Yugi?”

_At least Kaiba seems to be returning to his old self again_. “Don’t be deceived by appearances, Kaiba,” Yugi replied, gesturing toward the rod. “Even without the Dark Magician, the Magician’s Rod has a special ability, which allows me to add a spell or trap card from my deck to my hand so long as it has “Dark Magician” in its text.” Tapping the top of his deck slot, a faint blue holographic of his deck list scrolled up before his eyes. He flicked through it with a finger until he found the one he was looking for – Dark Magical Circle. He swiped his fingers through it, the card materializing into his hand as the rest of the deck list blinked out of existence. “I choose Dark Magical Circle, which I activate now!” 

Yugi tossed the spell card into his backfield, watching it blossom into a large indigo mandela of ancient text and magic sigils. It drew a collective gasp of wonder from the crowd, which echoed the one that escaped his own chest. Kaiba-Templar’s technological leap from simple holographics to lifelike realism truly spoke to the genius Kaiba and Rachel shared. It was evident a lot of love and effort went in to creating such a spectacle, and it was only made possible by the union of two incredible minds. 

_I wish Kaiba could see it that way with the baby_ …pushing aside a sudden wave of sorrow, Yugi continued his turn with a slash of his hand. “Dark Magical Circle allows me to look at the top three cards of my deck, and add to my hand one that is either Dark Magician, or has “Dark Magician” in its text.” The top three cards flew off his deck, hovering above the indigo Mandela in the backfield. There was only one card he wanted; Dark Magician. 

Adding the monster to his hand and returning the other cards to the top of the deck, Yugi spun a card into his backfield and brought his gaze to Kaiba’s. “With that, I end my turn.”

The grin that crossed Kaiba’s face was empty and forced, tightening his features rather than relaxing them. He pulled a card from his deck, letting it slip from between his fingers to the backfield. “I play Enemy Controller!” The card exploded in a flash of sparks, the sparks materializing into a large video-game controller with several multi-colored buttons on its face. Yugi frowned; the card was a staple in Kaiba’s deck, but to play it so soon was almost foolish of him. Kaiba lifted his hand, tracking the controller as it rose above his head. “I pay 1000 of my own life points to enter the hidden code that destroys your Magician’s Rod!” The life point counter above his head scrolled down to 7000, taking on a yellowish hue. 

“Not so fast, Kaiba!” Yugi interrupted, slashing his hand forward. The card from his backfield, Magical Dimension, rose up. “In response to your spell, I activate Magical Dimension! I tribute my Magician’s Rod rather than allow it to be destroyed, which in turn allows me to special summon a spellcaster-type monster from my hand!” His spell card burst into multicolored particles, which formed themselves into thick chains that bound the purple staff in his monster zone. The stadium cheered as the rod disappeared in a blinding flash of light, along with Magical Dimension. Yugi slipped Dark Magician from his fingers, spinning it toward his monster zone. “In the rod’s place, I summon the master himself – Dark Magician!” 

Dark Magician rose from a shower of sparks, the monster’s purple and black cloak shimmering in the summer sunlight. The ecstatic roar from the crowd echoed around the stadium. 

Kaiba scowled. “Cute, Muto, but your Dark Magician isn’t good enough to save you. He never was!” Kaiba thrust another card into his backfield; a spell that appeared as a cloud of bluish-white smoke. The smoke obscured Kaiba from Yugi’s vision. “I activate Dragon Shrine!” When the smoke cleared, a twisting knot of large, white bones curled like the fingers of a hand surrounded Kaiba protectively. 

“Dragon Shrine allows me to send a dragon-type monster from my deck to my graveyard.” He smirked, his deck list hologram scrolling up. He selected a card from among the list, tapping it and sending it into the graveyard. “I, of course, choose Blue-Eyes White Dragon!” He gestured to the bone cage around him. “Dragon Shrine’s second effect kicks in; if the first monster I sent to my graveyard was a Normal monster, I can send a second monster to my graveyard.” He chose another card from his deck list, pushing it into the graveyard. “And I choose White Stone of Legend!” 

_Here comes Blue-Eyes_ , Yugi thought as Kaiba continued his turn. 

“I’ll activate White Stone of Legend’s effect from the grave, which allows me to add a second Blue-Eyes White Dragon to my hand from my deck!” A card leapt from his duel disk to his open palm, which he held in two fingers while plucking a second card from his hand. “Then, I activate the spell card Trade-In, which allows me to discard the Blue-Eyes I just drew to draw two new cards.” When he had done so, the ghost of a smirk touched his thin lips. He dropped a card into his backfield, which vaporized in a ball of silver light. “Then, I’ll activate Silver’s Cry!” 

A faint roar sounded from somewhere outside the stadium (or so it seemed within the virtual reality), and Kaiba’s graveyard glowed a brilliant silver. From the shining light exploded the sleek reptavian form of his fabled monster, which shot into the sky like a bullet. “Silver’s Cry allows me to summon a normal monster from my graveyard, and I think you know which one I’m taking.” Kaiba tossed his upraised palm to the sky, toward the descending streak that came down from the heavens. “ _Blue-Eyes White Dragon_!” 

When the gigantic silver dragon landed across the arena from him amidst the deafening roar of the crowd, Yugi considered the options for defense he had in his hand. It didn’t look very promising, but he _did_ have Kuriboh to protect himself this turn. He also still had Electromagnetic Turtle in his graveyard. When he returned his attention to the duel, Kaiba had initiated his attack phase with a downward slice of his hand. 

“Blue-Eyes White Dragon, attack Yugi’s Dark Magician!” Blue-Eyes reared its head back, a sizzling white plasma ball expanding between its massive jaws.  
  
Yugi smirked. “I don’t think so!” He pointed to his graveyard, where a ball of blue-white energy expanded across the arena to encompass the charging Blue-Eyes. “Electromagnetic Turtle’s effect activates from the grave, stopping your Blue-Eyes from attacking before it can ever harm my Dark Magician!” 

Kaiba fumed silently as the dragon’s plasma ball extinguished, leaving the creature looking utterly confused. Yugi couldn’t tell if the shadows beneath Kaiba’s eyes were from anger or desperation; both were present on Kaiba’s face, which had gone pale and was drawn from exhaustion. Yugi’s heart bled for him, but he knew any sympathy he offered would come at a steep price. 

With a frustrated flip of his wrist, Kaiba set two cards face down in his backfield. “Take your turn, Muto.” 

Yugi drew the top card of his deck. He shuffled it in among his hand, plucking Kuribandit from between his fingers and spinning it into his monster zone. “I summon Kuribandit to my field in attack position!” When the fuzzy ball of a creature appeared in the gridlines of his playing field, Yugi slashed his hand toward his card graveyard. “Then, I activate its effect!” Kuribandit exploded in a wave of white light. “By tributing Kuribandit, I reveal the top five cards of my deck. If any are spells or traps, I add them to my hand. If any are monsters, I discard them.” He thumbed the top five cards off his deck, looking them over. Perfect – all of them are spell and trap cards! He brought his head up. “All five cards I drew – Spellbinding Circle, Wonder Wand, Threatening Roar, Mystic Box, and Thousand Knives – are spells or traps. So I get to keep them all.” 

Kaiba remained silent, staring hollowly at Yugi with his arms crossed. It was painfully obvious that his head was out of the game, and Yugi couldn’t blame him. Part of him wished that Kaiba would just call off the duel already and go be with Rachel like he should, but deep down he knew this duel wouldn’t end until one of them lost. 

_For Rachel’s sake…I need to end this duel quickly._

Continuing with his turn, Yugi slapped Wonder Wand into his backfield. “Then I activate Wonder Wand, which increases my Dark Magician’s attack points by 500 – matching them with your Blue-Eyes White Dragon!” The card exploded in a spray of sparks; an intricate silver and emerald wand appeared in Dark Magician’s hands, replacing the one he was already carrying. The attack points above the monster’s head rose to 3000. After placing two cards face down in his backfield, Yugi initiated his attack phase with a swipe of his hand. “Dark Magician, attack and destroy Kaiba’s Blue-Eyes!” 

Kaiba sneered. “You’d sacrifice your Dark Magician just to get my Blue-Eyes off the field?” 

Yugi stared at him evenly. “If it means bringing this duel closer to an end – _yes_.” 

The sneer dropped. “Then you’re making a stupid mistake.” Kaiba shot his hand forward, raising one of the facedown cards from his backfield. It broke apart in a spray of black and purple light; the crowd went wild as metal chains snaked from his backfield, wrapping themselves around Dark Magician like a cocoon. “I activate Shadow Spell, which prevents Dark Magician from attacking and lowers his attack points to 2300.” Kaiba crossed his arms once again. “While I truly admire your skill in wielding the Dark Magician, Yugi, your strategies with him never could stand up to me.” He smiled, but it was forced and empty. “Sorry, but only _I_ am allowed to issue threats of ending a duel quickly.”

Yugi let the crowd’s thrilled screams wash away into silence before responding. “It’s not going to be over that easily, Kaiba. It never is.” He swallowed, words coming unbidden into the back of his throat. “Just like you can’t run from Rachel that easily.”

The crowd’s roar diminished to a confused babble. Yugi winced; while he said what needed to be said, he wasn’t truly prepared for Kaiba’s reaction. His rival’s face flushed beet red, lips pulling back against his teeth in a snarl that reminded Yugi of a dog ordered to attack.

“Leave my wife OUT OF THIS!” Kaiba roared, stunning the stadium into near complete silence. He stabbed an accusatory finger toward Yugi, eyes brimming with pure, unbridled rage. His voice trembled. “This is between me and you, Muto! So keep your mouth shut about things you don’t understand and DUEL!”

The brief crack in Kaiba’s shell was enough to convince Yugi to stop trying to reason with him. It was clear the man was desperate to do anything but think about his future, and the only way he knew how was to go back to his old habits of self-preservation and Duel Monsters. 

_If this is the only way to get through to him….so be it._


	10. Dueling Emotions: Part Two

Seto’s chest began to cramp as Yugi continued his turn, setting two cards in his backfield and inclining his chin in a signal that he was finished. The red vitals readouts to the top left of Seto’s vision were wavering dangerously close to the point of no return; try as he might, he found it difficult to control his rapid breathing and pounding heart. It had been hard enough already to battle the raging conflict between running away and putting on a front for the tournament. He still had no idea how to process the thousands of other emotions running through his mind, along with the thoughts that swirled every now and again to chomp away at his hardened exterior. 

And knowing that Rachel was watching him from the ready room was nearly too painful to bear. Her beautiful face swam before his vision, emerald eyes flooded with tears and rosy lips begging him to stay with her.

Seto slammed his eyes shut. _Get a hold of yourself, Kaiba…just a little longer…_

His hand trembled as he plucked the top card from his deck, forcing his eyes open to look at it. It was Maiden with Eyes of Blue; just the card he needed to gain an edge in this duel. Taking a breath, he spun the card into his monster zone. “I summon Maiden with Eyes of Blue to my field in attack position!” 

The pale, silver-haired maiden rose from a brilliant blue-white aurora, hair flowing on an unseen current. Seto hovered his hand over one of the facedown cards in his backfield, raising it up like a trap door. “Then, I activate my continuous trap card, Castle of Dragon Souls!” The card burst into swirling purple incandescence, an orb of light floating backward over his head. He turned; the orb expanded, molding into the shape of an ancient, crooked stone parapet that towered behind him and casting an angular shadow over the arena against the summer sunlight. 

The crowd cooed in awe, thought it was subdued; Yugi’s brash calling-out of his private behavior in front of the entire world had spurred Seto into a moment of blind rage that had most likely cost him dearly in profits and viewership. Part of that rage returned as Seto continued his turn, activating the effect of his trap card. 

“Castle of Dragon Souls allows me to increase Maiden’s attack points by 700 by banishing White Stone of Legend from my graveyard.” The White Stone of Legend shot from his card graveyard, disappearing into a spray of white sparks. He pointed toward Maiden. “Since Maiden was targeted, her effect activates; it allows me to summon another Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my hand, deck, or graveyard!” Seto scrolled up his deck list, swiping his hand through the card projection and releasing it toward the field. “Come forth, Blue-Eyes White Dragon!” 

Yugi’s violet eyes watched him closely as the second Blue-Eyes White Dragon appeared on his field amidst excited screams from the crowd. His opponent’s face was long and heavy with emotion, mirroring what Seto felt in the pit of his stomach. The sense that he had let Yugi down somehow got to him, cracking yet another chink out of his emotional armor, which was slowly but surely crumbling away. Swallowing, Seto initiated his battle phase, ripping his eyes from Yugi. 

“Blue-Eyes White Dragon, attack Yugi’s Dark Magician!” 

“Kaiba, you’re slipping up,” Yugi remarked quietly, activating one of the facedown cards in his backfield. The card expanded into a green mandala of ancient text and sigils, encompassing the attacking Blue-Eyes and freezing it in mid-blast. “I activate my trap, Spellbinding Circle! Your Blue-Eyes is rendered useless, unable to attack or change its battle position!” He immediately plucked another card from between his fingers, sending it toward the monster zone. “And since I activated a trap on your turn, I can special summon Magician of Dark Illusion to the field from my hand!” 

_Shit. I’m making rookie mistakes…I need to pay closer attention_ , Seto scolded himself as the wispy, black Magician of Dark Illusion rose to the arena from a cloud of glittering smoke. Gritting his teeth, Seto tried again with his second dragon. “My second Blue-Eyes, _take down Yugi’s Dark Magician!_ ”

Again, Yugi admonished him with a sad look. “I activate my second face-down card, Threatening Roar!” A visible sound wave rose from Yugi’s backfield, blasting across the arena with enough force to knock Seto back a few stumbling steps. The crowd’s roaring – and the ringing in Seto’s ears – completely drowned out the rest of Yugi’s words. Seto didn’t care that he missed them; his frustration began to boil over, constricting his chest yet again. His heart rate vital spiked again, the dim chime from his Crystal Cloud monitor threatening to disconnect him from the simulation. The green gridlines wavered, nearly blinking out as Seto fought to gain control of his thudding heart. 

_Hold on….keep it together…_

“Kaiba…?” Yugi’s concerned voice carried across the arena. It stabbed Seto right in the stomach; he sounded like Atem.

“Just take your turn, Muto!” Seto shouted, refusing to bring his eyes up. Though he knew he could easily recover from these setbacks, and he had the upper hand in this duel, he still felt like loss was only a matter of time. 

The crowd’s roaring faded once again. Taking a deep breath, Seto forced himself to stand tall. Across the arena Yugi was deep in focus, his violet eyes staring deliberately at the card he pulled from his deck. His red and black spiked hair shimmered as he tossed the card immediately into the monster zone. 

“Since I just drew this card, I can instantly summon it from my hand; rise up, Palladium Oracle Mahad!” 

The black and white-clad oracle rose from a shower of crystalline sparks, raising his gnarled wooden staff toward Seto in challenge. Seto felt his mouth go dry as Yugi activated a spell from his hand, his thin face betraying no more emotion whatsoever. “Then I activate Thousand Knives, targeting one of your Blue-Eyes White Dragons!”

Seto could only watch as his dragon roared, dissolving into wisps of light as the knives from Yugi’s spell rained down on it. Once the tendrils of smoke had disappeared, Yugi played another spell from his hand. “Next, I activate Mystic Box!” A tall, thin green and red pair of magician’s trick boxes bounced up from the backfield, the doors opening into a vortex of white light. “Mystic Box allows me to destroy one of your monsters, and give you control of one of my monsters for the rest of the turn.” Yugi slashed his hand forward, pointing toward Maiden with Eyes of Blue. “I choose your Maiden with Eyes of Blue to be destroyed, and in her place I’ll give you Dark Magician!” 

Maiden with Eyes of Blue opened her mouth in a silent scream as she was sucked into one of the tall boxes, both disappearing in an explosion of colorful streamers. Yugi’s Dark Magician was swallowed by the other box, which leapt across the arena to Seto’s monster field and deposited the spellcaster there in a blast of white light. 

A half-hearted smirk touched Yugi’s lips, his fingers plucking another card from his hand. “I set a card facedown in my backfield, and end my turn. Which means that Dark Magician returns to me.” 

As he spoke, the Dark Magician levitated from the arena floor, floating back to Yugi’s side of the field and turning to face Seto with a menacing glare. 

The tremble that had taken up in Seto earlier had grown, his entire body quivering as he drew his next card. _Yugi is going to snuff me out if I don’t do something. I can’t let him win so easily, not when I have a reputation to keep_ … for the second time that day, after so many years of silence, Gozaburo Kaiba’s voice rang clear as day in the back of his mind. 

_You’re just a weak, sniveling child, Seto. You aren’t worthy to carry on the Kaiba legacy; you’ll never amount to anything more than just what you are – a scared little boy too afraid of his own shadow to become a man!_

The green gridlines flashed again as his vision wavered. He didn’t realize his eyes were filled with tears until he tried to look at the card he drew. Everything Gozaburo said stabbed him directly in the soul with truth; Seto wasn’t worthy of carrying on the Kaiba legacy, not as a father. All the ideals and values he had been raised with came from a place of manipulation and hatred, designed to plant deep roots of greed and self-preservation in Seto that he fought a losing battle against. He was afraid those roots would reach back out, snatch his heart and return it to the darkness that Rachel had only just pulled him from. If he sank back into those depths there was no telling what he would do; Seto had once been capable of raw cruelty, to the point of once trying to kill the man standing across the arena from him now.

Seto tore his flooded eyes from his card, gazing at Yugi’s worried expression. _Yugi…he doesn’t understand. Rachel doesn’t understand. NO ONE understands; I can’t do this. I can’t trust myself to fight against the darkness…I can’t let myself become like I was, like Gozaburo was. I can’t be a father like him – it’s not fair._

The card fell from his quaking fingers, hitting the arena floor. Hushed whispering splashed across the stadium; his composure had cracked so much that it was terribly obvious. Seto dropped to one knee and retrieved the fallen card, but when he tried to stand he realized he was shaking too much. 

_Get up….I can’t let them see me like this…_

“Kaiba, are you okay?!” Yugi’s voice was high and strident. His footsteps pounded toward Seto; in the last bit of strength he had, Seto flung his hand up, palm toward his rival. He looked at Yugi, who had jogged to a stop at the edge of his gridlines. They fuzzed in static as Seto’s heart rate rose through the red. 

“Get back to your side, Muto,” he called, voice shattered with emotion. Seto somehow found the strength to push off his knee, pulling himself upright in a wide stance that at least allowed him to keep his balance. He inhaled deeply through his nose, swiping at his eyes with the back of his hand. “I don’t need your sympathy!”

“This is _insane_ ,” Yugi argued, throwing his thin arms wide in exasperation. The crowd had gone deathly silent now, hanging on every word with palpable tension. Yugi’s violet eyes burned bright with concern as he stared evenly at Seto. “Look at yourself, Kaiba! End this duel, please! Go back to—“

“I said GET BACK TO YOUR SIDE!” Seto bellowed, the last vestiges of his rage surging into his chest. It was the only thing keeping him standing as he activated the card he had drawn, slamming it down into the monster zone. “I summon Alexandrite Dragon to my field in attack position!” 

The crystal dragon shot upward from the arena in brilliant purple coruscation, flapping its wings and settling in beside his remaining Blue-Eyes. Without bothering to play or set any of the other spells he had in his hand, Seto initiated his battle phase with a grunt, slashing his hand forward. “Blue-Eyes, lay waste to Palladium Oracle Mahad! Alexandrite, get rid of the Magician of Dark Illusion!” 

Yugi, who had only just managed to run back to his side of the arena behind the backfield, shot his hand forward. “I activate _Mirror Force_!” 

Seto’s heart finally beat itself into stone-cold submission. His stomach plummeted as his creatures were wiped from the field in a focused blast of golden light, clearing him wide open for attack on the next turn. He felt his knees nearly buckle; a hand flew to his chest, clutching the skin above his heart in a weak attempt at trying to ease the crushing pain it was causing. He had a hard time catching his breath as his dropped his eyes to the arena floor, bangs falling into them. 

_You set yourself up for failure at every turn, Seto! I’m ashamed to call you my son…you don’t deserve ANYTHING!!_

As Yugi initiated his attack phase, Seto released a cry of anguish and rage that echoed across the silent stadium. He was pulled from the simulation as his life points dwindled to zero. Constricting pain tore across his chest as he ripped the VR visor from his eyes, tossing it on the ground and smashing it beneath his boot heel. His heartbeat thudded in his ears as he peeled the duel disk glove from his arm, tossed it on the ground atop the destroyed visor, and fled the arena from the side he was standing on. Seto ignored Yugi’s pleading to stop and the shocked gasping from the crowd, pushing himself to run as fast as he could through the dim access tunnel toward the exit of the stadium. The white coat he wore flapped at his feet, dragging him down; he discarded it in two dips of his shoulders, the extra speed boost he gained by losing it propelling him faster away from the terrible thoughts that chased him.


	11. The Point of No Return

“Kaiba, _wait_!”

Yugi ran as fast as he could down the access tunnel after Kaiba, but his rival’s longer strides easily outpaced him. Kaiba disappeared around the corner well ahead of Yugi, who only managed to continue jogging through sheer will of ignoring the terrible cramp that had begun to ache his side. When he finally reached the corner, he turned to find the tunnel empty but for Kaiba’s white coat. It was bunched in the center of the concrete pathway, like a perfect dollop of cream. 

He approached it slowly, kneeling down and lifting the heavy, silver button-studded fabric in both his hands. Sadness struck Yugi’s heart, so strong that tears threatened to flood his eyes. _Kaiba_ …he glanced ahead at the empty tunnel, unsure of what to do. He could continue chasing down his rival, but there was the slimmest of chances that he would be able to catch up, let alone get the chance to speak his mind. Since they had taken the arena, Kaiba’s composure had crumbled like a mountain in the rain; slow at first, then he had lost more and more control of himself until there was nothing left but a terrible mudslide that consumed him whole. 

Yugi slung the thick coat over his shoulder, getting to his feet. The only option he had now was to turn back and leave things as they lie. He knew from personal experience that Kaiba couldn’t be forced into anything; he would come around when the time suited him best. Despite Rachel’s influence in getting him to open his heart, Kaiba still had a streak of self-preservation – as evidenced in everything that had happened today. 

_Rachel. She needs him. And Kaiba needs her, whether he can see it or not_. Yugi turned on his heel, casting one last sorrowful glance at the direction Kaiba had disappeared before walking back toward the thrumming arena. The summer sunlight spilled in from the half-moon exit of the access tunnel, washing the gray concrete in a semi-circle of bright, white light. _I have to try and fix this_. 

Sudden guilt stabbed through Yugi’s chest, bringing his booted feet to a stop just at the edge of the light. He felt his mouth go dry. He had let his frustration get the better of him, spewing thoughts he never intended to speak out loud in Kaiba’s face when his rival was on a downward spiral. It wasn’t until Yugi angrily told Kaiba he couldn’t run from his problems forever that the downward spiral turned into a plummet. Yugi’s stomach turned so violently with realization that his breakfast nearly came back up. 

_I caused this….it’s my fault he ran off. I should have just kept my mouth shut, like he said_. He tore his gaze from the floor, casting it across the brightly lit arena ahead. _Now Rachel will suffer even more because of me. I HAVE to do something_. 

Taking a breath to settle his flipping stomach, Yugi took a step into the light toward the arena. As the sunlight embraced him, joyous (if subdued) screams rose up from the crowd still packed into the oblong stadium. Yugi did his best to ignore them, only pasting a half-hearted smile on his face as he made the long trek across the rectangular arena back to the access tunnel he and Kaiba had originally come through. Though it only took less than a minute to reach the other side, it felt like a lifetime. The cheers from the crowd burned his ears; though they were meant to bring him up, all they did was weigh him down. 

Once Yugi had reached Access Tunnel A’s encompassing dimness, he was able to breathe a sigh of relief. Quickening his pace, he turned down Access Tunnel B toward the ready room at the far end. When he approached the large metal door, he found it sliding open on its own. Roland, Kaiba-Templar’s head of security, greeted him with a grim smile. 

“Congratulations, Mr. Muto,” the black-suited agent said quickly, offering his hand for a brisk handshake. His thin mustache twitched as his eyes fell on the coat across Yugi’s shoulder. “Where’s Mr. Kaiba?”

Yugi swallowed, stepping into the ready room as Roland moved out of the door frame. “He, ah…” His eyes fell on the leather sofa closest to the door, and his heart hurt. There was Rachel, laying dejectedly across the cushions with her head in Mokuba’s lap. Though her eyes were closed, Yugi was almost certain she wasn’t sleeping easily. The younger Kaiba brother, who must have arrived after Yugi and Kaiba took the arena, was stroking Rachel’s fiery hair with a tight expression. His indigo gaze, tired and sad, settled expectantly on Yugi. 

“Yugi.” Mokuba’s voice was heavy. 

“Mokuba.” Yugi stepped toward them, his gaze slipping to Rachel’s prone form. “How is she holding up?” 

Mokuba sighed, eyes likewise turning on his sister-in-law. “I don’t know. She was asleep when I got here; the stress must have knocked her out cold.” He bit his lower lip, passing his fingers through her red curls once more before returning his gaze to Yugi. “What happened out there, Yugi? My brother…he’s never acted like this before.”

Yugi pressed his lips together, slipping Kaiba’s heavy coat from his shoulder and gently swaddling Rachel in it. She whimpered softly, brow knitting into a frown, before she pulled the coat to her chin and snuggled tighter into Mokuba’s lap. 

“Kaiba told me that he couldn’t be a father.” Speaking the words felt like trying to swallow broken glass. Kaiba’s words to him in the tunnels before the duel were painful to recall, a memory he would sooner forget if he had the choice. His eyes fluttered closed as Kaiba’s drawn, exhausted face swam before his thoughts. _I can’t be a father, not after what I’ve been through_. When he opened his eyes again, Yugi found Mokuba staring at him with pain in his eyes. “He said he had his own reasons for leaving, and that he needed to work through them in his own way.” His gaze settled on Rachel’s gently rising and falling back. “But I don’t know where he went. Or if he’s coming back, like he promised me he would.”

An uneasy silence filled the room before Mokuba released a labored sigh. He carefully rolled Rachel to her back, slipping his arms beneath her neck and knees and lifting her in his arms as he stood. Amazingly, she remained fast asleep, her only movement tugging her husband’s coat tight around her like a security blanket. The action broke Yugi’s heart. 

“Roland, take my sister back to the estate and keep her comfortable,” Mokuba said, crossing the room as softly as he could. He slid Rachel into Roland’s arms, stepping back and adjusting his gray sweater-vest. “Watch over her until Seto and I come back.”

Roland nodded slowly, clutching his charge tight to his chest.” Yes, of course, sir, but…how are you going to find Mr. Kaiba?”

Mokuba granted him a sad smile. “There’s a few places I can imagine. My brother rarely displays emotion – especially not like the ones he clearly battled today – but the times he needed to get away for reprieve, I was always able to find him.” He flipped his wrist. “And besides, it’s hard to hide from Kaiba-Templar’s eyes for long in Domino City.”

Yugi found himself feeling almost offended by Mokuba’s flippancy. He crossed his arms, watching the younger Kaiba carefully. “You think you can bring your brother back? You think he’ll listen to you?”

Mokuba’s weak smile faltered. He shook his head, shrugging. “I’m not sure, but it’s worth my best try. I love Seto and Rachel with all my heart, and I know they love each other with all of theirs.” He stared pointedly at Yugi, moving forward and clasping a hand on his shoulder. “If Seto is going to listen to anyone, it’s going to be me. I know how you must be feeling, Yugi, but my brother has never taken your opinion with anything more than a grain of salt.” A weak grin returned to his lips, his hand sliding off Yugi’s shoulder. “If you want to help, the best thing you can do right now is keep your distance.”

Yugi nodded solemnly, dropping his arms to his sides. Mokuba was right; he couldn’t imagine Kaiba – or even Rachel, for that matter – would be too thrilled to see him so soon after his slip up during the duel. He wasn’t even sure they would still want him participating in the tournament; however, as if reading his thoughts, Mokuba continued, “Just continue participating in the tournament like everything is normal. The less the crowd knows about what actually happened here today, the better.” 

“I’ll do that, Mokuba,” Yugi replied, glancing once more at Rachel’s sleeping face. “Just…please bring Kaiba to his senses.” 

Mokuba swallowed. “That’s the idea.” He cocked a thick, black eyebrow at Yugi. “Do you need a ride back to the card shop?”

Yugi shook his head. “No, I…I think I’ll walk. I need to think about things.” 

Mokuba gave him a sad look. “Well…take care of yourself, Yugi. I’m sure you’ll hear from one of us soon. If you need anything, let me know.” 

Without another word, Mokuba turned and nodded to Roland. The two men left the ready room, leaving Yugi behind to contemplate his own vortex of revolving emotions.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *  
Nicodemus didn’t bother to look up from his fast-breaking meal as the Sanctified follower bowed beside him. He lifted a piece of naan bread from his plate, dipping it in the oil and vinegar bowl to his right. “What is it?” 

“High Priest, something has happened with Seto Kaiba.”

The tone of the follower’s voice beckoned his interested. Nicodemus turned, popping the oil-soaked bread into his mouth and chewing. He saw Falcon, who was standing guard at the door, watching the knelt follower carefully with sharp eyes. “Go on.”

The follower bowed his head, sandy hair catching the dim lighting like the shifting sands of the desert outside. He brought his blue eyes up to Nicodemus. “The duel with Kaiba and Yugi Muto just concluded, but it was unusual.” He swallowed. “Kaiba and Muto started arguing near the end, and when Muto won Kaiba fled the stadium.” 

Nicodemus swallowed the bread, the sweet and savory flavor warming his throat on the way down. He observed his follower, not bothering to hide the annoyance from his face. “And?”

The follower swallowed again. “Seto Kaiba seemed to be under emotional duress. He, ah…High Priest, he was tearful when he fled.”

Nicodemus stared at the follower. “Kaiba just lost another duel against Yugi Muto. Fleeing in anger would be a natural reaction to that, I imagine.” He sneered, ire rising. “Did you really think that important enough to bring to my attention and disturb my meal?” 

The follower’s eyes widened in fear. “N-No, High Priest, that’s not all. In the argument…Muto told Kaiba that he couldn’t run from Rachel that easily.”

_That_ drew Nicodemus’s attention. He shot a glance at Falcon, who only stared evenly in response. “Rachel – he must have meant Rachel Pendragon, Kaiba’s wife.” He leaned his elbows on his knees, bringing his gaze on the kneeling follower once more. “Do the Kaibas have a history of marital discord?”

The follower shook his head, shaggy hair slapping his face. “No, High Priest.”

Nicodemus sat back in his chair, passing a hand over his mouth to contain his excitement. Finally, a development worth consideration. Were it not for Yugi Muto’s odd statement, he would have passed this off as nothing of importance; it wouldn’t have been the first time Seto Kaiba’s pride was wounded by losing a duel. However, the added factor of Kaiba potentially thinking of leaving his newlywed wife was a different game altogether. Their relationship had been strong and loving for nearly two years; there was nothing to indicate previous problems that would culminate to such a point. Such a drastic change in behavior on Kaiba’s part must have been caused by something significant. 

_It still yet may be nothing…but it’s worth investigation._

“Have our brothers and sisters in Domino investigate,” Nicodemus declared, rising to his feet. “The Blue-Eyes White Dragon’s spirit is still missing, but this development may be a lead.” He placed his palm on the follower’s head. “You’ve done well. Go, spread the word.” 

The Sanctified bowed his forehead at Nicodemus’s sandaled feet before leaping up, rushing out of the dining hall with a whisper of cloak. When he was gone, Nicodemus turned to Falcon. “What do you make of it?”

Falcon crossed his arms, muscles rippling beneath his tan skin. “It has to be something. Despite his greed, Seto Kaiba has honor. Leaving his wife for no reason seems beneath him.” 

Nicodemus nodded. He abandoned his plate at the table, suddenly having lost his appetite. “I agree. It may not be due to Kisara’s influence, but it’s something.” He beckoned his right hand forward with a flip of his wrist. “Come, let’s review the footage of the duel and see if we can’t learn anything further.”


	12. New Moon

The Kaiba-Templar corporate satellite facility afforded the most all-encompassing, breathtaking view of Earth from orbit. The swirling blue and white curve of the heavenly body below was bathed in the sun’s rays, illuminated like a beacon in the night. It was a sight Mokuba normally enjoyed on the ride to the orbital platform, but right now the majesty of space was the furthest thing from his mind. As the elevator shuttle shot upward from the planet’s surface, he did his best to keep his focus from slipping. He wasn’t there to enjoy himself; anything but. 

That afternoon, when Roland had called from Kaiba Land’s exhibition stadium asking him to come right away, he felt in his heart that something was terribly wrong. He had arrived shortly after to a sorrowful sight; Rachel, his beautiful sister-in-law, curled into a ball and asleep in Roland’s lap, her chest wracked with fitful sobs every now and again. His brother, Seto, was out on the arena floor with Yugi for the opening duel of the Kaiba-Templar tournament, seemingly as if nothing was wrong at all. When Mokuba had taken Rachel into his arms, Roland had told him the entire story with as impassive of a face as he could. 

Though it was hard to swallow that his brother was capable of such a heartless reaction to such wonderful news, Mokuba had a looming hunch that he understood it exactly. He sighed as the elevator shuttle neared the end of the line, casting his gaze across the Earth’s azure expanse. 

_Seto was always afraid of becoming like Gozaburo. I wish he could see past that fear…_

Mokuba steeled himself as the shuttle began to slow, the final warning chime indicating his arrival to the station in less than a minute. When Seto had fled the stadium after suffering an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Yugi Muto, Mokuba knew there were only a few places he would run to for solace and solitude. The options ran thin as he checked each area personally; the Blue-Eyes White Dragon Jet was still parked on the runway of the estate, and Seto’s personal engineering lab was completely empty. That left the only place that, in hindsight, made sense for him to flee to – the orbital facility.

When the shuttle locked into place and compressed air began to cycle into the airlock, Mokuba unbuckled himself from the seat and stood. His heart quickened as the doors slid open, exposing the empty, cavernous expanse of the facility’s entrance. When he stepped onto the moving sidewalk, he forced his thoughts to formulate into cohesive tangents. 

Mokuba knew he was the best chance to bring Seto out of his despair. He had lived under Gozaburo’s roof and rules too; he understood what it was like, fighting against the inner demons that KaibaCorp’s wicked CEO had planted in their heads. But the one constant that kept Mokuba from breaking was his big brother. Seto took the brunt of the blow, oftentimes taking the blame for Mokuba’s mistakes and suffering the consequences so that Mokuba didn’t have to. His big brother, tall and proud, would take it all in stride; however, that strength began to chip away over time, and when Gozaburo finally died Seto’s resolve had already taken a devastating blow. He became mean, closed off and self-centered enough that sometimes Mokuba wondered if he had even truly cared for him at all. It was only after the pharaoh banished the darkness from his heart that a part of the old Seto began to re-emerge. 

_Then Rachel finished the job. I’ve never seen my brother so in love with anyone…I just hope he hasn’t forgotten how it feels to be loved in turn._

The moving sidewalk came to an end, depositing him in the dimly lit common room that covered the width of the facility. Mokuba began to head toward the private testing lab at the back, but a soft, almost imperceptible sob stopped him. He turned to the right; beyond the comfortable sofas and lounge tables, huddled with his knees to his chest beside the window overlooking the view of Earth, was Seto. His outline was illuminated with the soft white glow of Earth’s reflection, setting him apart from the shadows he cowered in. 

Heart breaking, Mokuba slowly wound his way through the tables and sofas and came to a stop a few feet from his brother. Seto didn’t move, but he didn’t have to; in the reflection from the glass, Mokuba could see tears rolling down his brother’s pale face. 

“Go away, Mokuba,” Seto murmured. It sounded like his voice hadn’t been used in years. 

Mokuba bit his lower lip. “Seto…what are you doing up here?” 

Seto didn’t respond. He continued to keep his head turned, facing the glass with his eyes blankly staring out over the expanse of space. 

Mokuba gingerly took a step forward. “Seto, I don’t understand what’s going on. Please, I want to help you—“

“I _said_ go away,” Seto replied, sinking himself deeper into the shadows. His leather pants squeaked as he brought his knees closer to his chest. His breathing sounded labored. “This doesn’t concern you.” 

A flash of frustration brought Mokuba forward another step. “Actually, it _does_. Because of your unstable outburst on the arena this morning, Kaiba-Templar’s profits plummeted. Our investors are afraid that there’s a breakup happening between the married presidents of the richest company in the world, and they want out before shit hits the fan.” He squatted on his haunches, resting his elbows on his knees and staring at Seto. “Is that a reality we’re going to have to face here?”  
  
Seto remained silent, staring lifelessly into the black void beyond. 

Mokuba sighed heavily, hanging his head. “Big brother…do you remember the wife Gozaburo used to have?”

Though Seto still refused to respond, he tilted his head against the glass in a way that told Mokuba he was listening. Mokuba continued, “Do you even remember her name? Or how she looked? What she was like?” 

“No,” his brother finally croaked after a long pause. Seto’s blue eyes, red and irritated, flicked his direction. “She wasn’t around long enough to get to know her.” Annoyance flashed across his pallid face as he sniffled, wiping his nose with the back of his sleeve. “What does it matter?” 

“Going back through KaibaCorp’s official records, I discovered who she was,” Mokuba ignored his question, plopping himself into a sitting position at Seto’s feet. He crossed his legs, turning to face his brother. “Her name was Naomi Turner. She was the heir to a British investment firm, and when she married Gozaburo he completely bought out the firm and all its assets behind her back. Then, when she bore him a son – Noah – he was all but done with her.” Mokuba grimaced. “She had served her purpose – bearing a boy to carry on the Kaiba name. The only reason he kept her around as long as he did was because the boy needed someone to take care of him while Gozaburo worked. Then, when Noah died and we were adopted, Gozaburo completely cut her out of his life.” Mokuba swallowed, feeling terrible. “He more or less erased her from everything. Instead of just divorcing her, he got their marriage annulled and completely expunged. He cut her out of his will, took her name from all accounts KaibaCorp and her own company held…and then she disappeared.” 

Mokuba glanced at Seto, finding his brother watching him intently in the glass’s reflection. Mokuba swallowed again, mustering up all his courage. “I vaguely remember Naomi, Seto. I remember the day she left…KaibaCorp security ushered her out, basically threw her off the front steps of the estate. The look on her face was utter betrayal and loss.” Mokuba brought his gaze level with his brother. “Would you _ever_ do that to Rachel?” 

“ _Never_ ,” Seto whispered, fresh tears pooling in his eyes. He finally looked at Mokuba head on. “I could _never_ do that to her.” 

_Thank God…progress_. “Gozaburo was a poisonous snake,” Mokuba all but spat, scooting closer to his older brother. “He was a murderer, a liar, and a child abuser. His only goal in life was personal gain.” He placed a hand on Seto’s bent knee, feeling emotion swell in his chest. “Seto… _none_ of that is in you. I _know_ you, big brother. I remember all the times you took the fall for me, protected me from that bastard. He was never able to fully beat the love out of you like he wanted.” The backs of his owns eyes burned with tears as Seto’s began to fall freely again. He squeezed his brother’s knee. “I know you’re afraid of becoming like him, of being a father like him…but Seto, that’s not _possible_.” 

“What if you’re wrong?” Seto breathed, his voice trembling. “Mokuba, I’ve done terrible things…all because of what he taught me. And I did them _willingly_.” He sat forward, pressing his lips together into a thin line. “What if it comes back? What if, because of his influence, I…I…” he stuttered himself to a stop, cupping his face in his hands. After a long, painful silence he brought his head back up. His azure eyes were bloodshot with pain. “I can’t let anything like that happen to my child. Or to Rachel.”

“ _You_ are the only one that can prevent that, Seto.” Mokuba gazed at his brother imploringly. “You know that. Your actions in the past have been reconciled; Rachel helped you see that. Now it’s time that you repaid her for it.” Mokuba gave Seto a sad look. “Big bro, I understand what you’re going through…but have you considered the small price you’re paying compared to what _she’s_ going through?” Mokuba licked his lips. “Rachel is going to be a mother; the mother of _your_ child, the man she loves with all her heart. Do you think that if she thought for a moment that you would become like Gozaburo, she would have married you at all?”

Seto stared at Mokuba, his eyes hardening around the edges for a moment before realization seemed to sink in. As the last traces of resistance left his brother’s face, his blue eyes widened with guilt. 

“Mokuba…..what have I done?!” 

Mokuba’s heartstrings tugged at the trembling pain in Seto’s voice. He shifted, sidling up to Seto’s right side and putting his arm around his broad shoulders. “Seto, you haven’t done anything wrong. You’re scared, nervous – I understand that. _We_ understand that.” Mokuba tightened his grip. “You need to go back to Rachel. Let her know that you still love her.”

Seto rested his head on Mokuba’s shoulder, a single sob escaping his lips. 

Mokuba’s eyes burned as tears rolled from them freely. Relief cooled his chest; he had managed to break through the ice covering Seto’s heart, helping him see the errors of his ways. The gamble he took confronting his brother paid off in full. Regardless, it was still hard to hear such sorrow in Seto’s voice, such regret and guilt. Mokuba kissed the top of Seto’s head, clutching his big brother tight to his chest with as much reassurance as he could. 

“I…I still need time to think,” Seto spoke after a moment, voice heavy. “To process everything…and how I’m going to make it all right.” He looked up, blue eyes glistening. “Stay with me, Mokey. Please.” 

Mokuba nodded, holding his brother as tight as Seto used to hold him in their childhood. 

“Take your time, big brother. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”


	13. Awake and In Dreams

_The young woman was there, long silvery hair flowing on a current unseen. She stood silent and watchful in an undefined mist, her rough-spun cotton tunic swirling about her ankles. She lifted her arms, palms up with fingers spread imploringly. A smile touching her thin lips, reflected in her intense crystal-colored eyes._

_Rachel watched her from a distance – or was it a distance? She couldn’t really tell. There was nothing in her surroundings aside from the cool mist and the young woman, whom she had seen disappear before her eyes in the bathroom of Kaiba-Templar’s headquarters. She knew she should be afraid, or at least apprehensive, but the longer she looked into the woman’s eyes the quieter her mind became of those sorts of thoughts._

_She also couldn’t quite understand the emotional turmoil she felt lurking at the fringes of her mind. Something bad had happened to her, something that tore her heart….but she couldn’t for the life of her remember what it was._

_“Who are you?” she asked, though her lips didn’t move. Her voice, a faint whisper, echoed around the empty nothingness they stood in._

_The woman didn’t respond; at least, not in a way that Rachel could comprehend. No sooner had the question left her mind than an overwhelming sense of love and security enfolded her like a pair of protective wings. Warm, powdery blue light sifted from the mist, from between the young woman’s fingers. The light wrapped itself around Rachel’s body, relaxing every muscle within her until she felt completely at peace. A sigh of relief escaped her lungs, shifting the mist and light around her._

_“Who are you?” Rachel asked again._

_“I am She,” the woman replied in the same echoing whisper, her voice of a soft, timid quality. “The Light against the Dark. The Moral Compass. The Protector.”_

_“I’m sorry…I don’t understand,” Rachel frowned._

_The young woman smiled wider, lowering her hands to her side. The mist billowed away from her with the movement._

_“We are one and the same, Rachel. Of one mind and one body. I am the spirit of the protector; give me your troubles, your fears. Let me take away your pain, as I took it away from Him.”_

_“Him?” Confusion began to cloud Rachel’s mind, adding to the thickness of the swirling mist. The vapor began to blanket over the young woman, obscuring her from view as the pain at the fringes of Rachel’s mind began to creep inward._

_“Seto….” She thought her reaction would be one of sadness, but there was nothing in the warmth surrounding her. She only stared at the silver-haired woman, who seemed to have drawn closer. “Where is he?”_

_The woman’s smile widened, love and light emanating from her like a beacon in the darkness. It illuminated the swirling vapor like stars spread across the heavens._

_“Give me your pain,” the young woman repeated, reaching her hand out. Rachel felt the urge to take it, felt her arm lifting in response but she couldn’t quite reach. Their fingertips barely touched; brilliant white light exploded from their contact, blasting Rachel up and away from the nothingness and toward a bright point at the center of whatever universe she was in. The young woman didn’t follow, but her words were clear as day in Rachel’s mind._

_“I am with you. Fear not, Rachel Pendragon. Love has conquered the beast within; your heart is his salvation.”_

* * *

Rachel started awake, finding herself fully clothed and wrapped snugly in the thick, white blankets of her bed. Sunset cast purple and red ambiance into the airy bedroom, filtered through the sheer curtains in shimmering waves. A light breeze blew in through the open window, carrying the scent of cherry blossoms from the garden. As she sat up, running a hand through her tangle curls, she noticed Roland sitting just outside the open door of the bedroom. 

Her rustling caught his attention; he turned, immediately rising from his chair and stepping into the doorframe.

“Lady Kaiba, it’s good to see you awake,” he said, sounding relieved. His thin mustache twitched as a smile turned up the corners of his lips. “How did your sleep?” 

“I’m not sure…” she replied honestly, grasping the covers in her hands and slowly squeezing feeling back into her fingers. She blinked slowly. “How long was I out? I don’t even remember falling asleep.” 

“You’ve been asleep for 12 hours, ma’am.” 

Mild shock rippled through her sternum. She licked her lips, finding them dry. “What time is it now?” Her eyes flicked around the room once, her chest going cold. She suddenly realized it was empty but for her and the head of security. “…where’s my husband?” 

It was clear the question made Roland uncomfortable. He shifted his weight, clearing his throat. “He, ah…he went to the satellite facility, Lady Kaiba. Mr. Mokuba went with him.” As an afterthought, he added, “Mr. Mokuba wished for me to keep watch over you tonight. You also received a message from Dr. Tanaka at the lab.” He allowed a small smile to cross his lips. “She requested you see her for your first sonogram tomorrow morning. She estimates you're about a month pregnant.” 

Though Rachel knew Roland was trying to let her down easy, it didn’t make it any less painful for her. She lowered her gaze, the memories and emotions came flooding back as she gripped the bed covers tight to her chin; she had informed Kaiba about the pregnancy, then had to watch him walk away from her with nothing but an icy exterior. It was the worst moment of her life. Kaiba was everything to her, the rock she had laid all of her foundations on. To see that rock crumble and disappear into dust had shaken her to her very soul. 

_Love has conquered the beast within. Your heart is his salvation._

The young woman from her hallucinations and dreams shimmered into the forefront of her mind, her serenely smiling face eating away at the shadows of doubt and despair that came crashing in on all sides. The same warmth Rachel felt in the dream spread throughout her body, setting her limbs tingling with hope. If any part of the dream she experienced was supernatural in essence, Rachel firmly hoped that the mystery woman’s message was right. She was mad, alone, frightened, torn – but something deep within the pit of her stomach told her that Kaiba hadn’t truly given up on her. She pressed a hand to her stomach; a wellspring of hope blossomed there, bringing her head up once again.

“No.”

Roland’s confusion showed plainly on his face. “Ma’am?”

Rachel shook her head, russet curls bouncing across her shoulders. “To Dr. Tanaka’s request; my answer is no.” She locked gazes with the head of security, willing him to understand. “I won’t do it without Seto there.” 

Roland’s dark eyes turned sad. “Lady Kaiba…if I may speak freely, I’m not sure when Mr. Kaiba will return. Mr. Mokuba went to speak with him, but we haven’t heard anything from him since he departed in the elevator shuttle to the orbital facility.” He pressed his lips together, genuine concern spelled across his narrow face. “Are you certain you want to wait?”

Rachel granted him an imploring look. “I understand your concern, Roland, and I appreciate it….but I _know_ my husband will come back. Don’t ask me how….I just do.” She blinked slowly; the silver-haired young woman faded from her mind as a rumble in her stomach told her she was hungry. She opened her eyes again, nodding once. “Tell Dr. Tanaka I’ll be in touch with her when I’m ready. And…” a sheepish grin peeled across her lips, “…I’m starving. Can you please have something brought to me? I think I’ll take dinner in bed tonight.”

Roland bowed deeply; she didn’t miss the rejuvenated look of relief on his face. 

“Right away, Lady Kaiba. Anything in particular you’re hungry for?”

Rachel couldn’t help but smile, keeping her palm pressed firmly to her stomach. “Peanut butter seems to be the popular item with us right now. I think a peanut butter and jelly sandwich will do.” 

A smile tugged at the corner of Roland’s lips as he bowed himself out of her room. When she was alone, Rachel sighed and hoisted herself out of bed and across the room to the walk-in closet. She pulled a pink nightgown down from the middle shelf, slipping out of her work clothes and into the silk shift. She did her best to keep thoughts of Kaiba and the day’s events at bay, at least long enough for reprieve. When she slid back into the comfortable bed, she laid across the pillows and stared at the deepening light of sunset playing against the ceiling. The empty space beside her was jarring, enough to tug on her heartstrings and draw the sting of tears to her eyes.

_It’s going to be a long night…_


	14. Reparations

Seto stood as steady and straight as he possibly could before the door to the private suite he shared with Rachel. He held his shoulders firm and square, jaw set in resolve that was stronger than steel to outward appearances.

Inside, he knew that was a lie. Despair and fear filled his chest like a thick noxious fog, hope slowly crumbling beneath the crushing weight of his thoughts. He had returned from the Kaiba-Templar satellite the following morning after spending the night in orbit with Mokuba, collecting himself as best he could to face Rachel again. Mokuba had gone ahead to make sure Rachel was willing to see him; when he had come back with no answer, Seto’s heart tore open. He had no idea how she was feeling; he had done his best to keep thoughts of her at bay all night, afraid of himself and how he might turn on her. 

Though it only took him a night to realize his grave mistake, imagining what her reaction to seeing him might be made him physically ill. He loved Rachel with every fiber of his being, and was having a hard time accepting that, because of his reckless abandon, she could very well kick him out of her life. It was well within her right to do so, and he knew that; however, he also knew what it would do to him if the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with decided she no longer shared that sentiment. 

_For my sake, I hope nothing is broken between us – only bent._

He forced himself to focus his gaze on the door, lifting his fist to knock. His heart pounded against his ribcage as he rapped his knuckles against the white paneling in the Morse code signal he had used with her the previous year, when they were on the run – STO, Safe To Open. His throat closed for a just a moment as the knock died off in an empty echo. The code was a sign of love and protection for her when he had invented it – actions he had failed miserably to perform in this situation. It drove another stake into his heart, cracking his composure a little more.

_Please…if there is a God, let this work._

“It’s open.” 

Rachel’s soft voice was lined with a jagged edge. Wincing, Seto did his best to keep the mask of placid calm on his face as he turned the brass handle, slowly pushing the door open. On the far side of the room, lying across the leather sofa beneath the rectangular bay window, his wife gazed out across the expanse of the estate’s garden. Her red-gold curls shimmered like fire in the sunlight, draped in waves over the shoulders of the simple white halter dress she wore. Her knees were tucked beneath her and her hand fidgeted with the pearl necklace around her throat, eerily reminding him of the night he finally confessed his love for her aboard the Blue-Eyes White Dragon Jet. He had found her in a similar position then, bearing a similar state of mind. 

Seto attempted to distance himself from the inescapable despair that wrung his throat, gently closing the door behind him and facing her with perfect stillness. The tension was palpable, as though making too much noise would fracture the eggshells he treaded. 

“Rachel,” he began softly, allowing the sorrow and regret in his chest to break through his words. “I….I don’t even know where to begin.” He ran a trembling hand through his thick brown hair when she remained silent. He forced himself to cut right to the chase, the words grinding like glass in his chest. “I fucked up. And I understand if you can’t forgive me. I had a reason , a _stupid_ reason….and…” His voice failed to continue coming through; a pathetic attempt to justify his actions was pointless, and would only harm the situation further. Seto clamped his mouth shut, swallowing and watching his wife closely. 

The only movement Rachel made was the rising and falling of her chest in breath, though he did notice it quicken. When it became painfully apparent that she wasn’t going to respond, he started to feel his last shred of hope disintegrate. He wished she would yell, get angry, even simply acknowledge his presence. The fact that she chose to forgo violence for silence shattered his composure to the core. He felt his knees beginning to buckle, just as they did during his duel with Yugi the previous morning. 

“Rachel, please,” he tried again, the wavering of sorrow clinging to his voice. The backs of his eyes began to burn, a lump growing in his throat that he found difficult to swallow around. “I don’t…I can’t…..”

“I’m a month along,” Rachel finally spoke, cutting him off with a voice that was nearly a whisper. She finally turned his direction; her face was drawn tight with emotion. “Dr. Tanaka at the lab wanted to do an ultrasound, but I told her to wait.” Her green eyes became glassy, voice cracking. “I didn’t want you to miss it.” 

The last of Seto’s resolve disappeared in a broken sigh. He managed to make it to the edge of his mahogany desk, gripping the corner with white knuckles. Guilt battered him, electrifying his anguish and ripping a sob from his chest. He clenched the edge of the desk until his veins stood out. He couldn’t bear to bring himself to look at her, though he could feel her gaze on him.

_After all I’ve done to her…she still has hope for me. She still loves me._

Seto wasn’t sure how long he stood there, fighting to conquer the overwhelming tide of every emotion he could imagine that smothered him. Anger at himself, fear of the damage done by his reckless stupidity, astonishment that Rachel still held out for him…it nearly brought him to his knees. Would have, had it not been for the soft approach of footsteps from the opposite end of the room. When he finally had the courage to look up, tears flooding his eyes, he found Rachel standing a few feet from him. Her hands were clasped regally at her waist, eyes sharp but tired. 

After a long, painful moment of awkward silence in which only the sounds of birds chirping in the garden penetrated, she extended a hand toward him, fingers splayed. Her brilliant diamond wedding ring – the diamond of Guinevere, forged from Excalibur – spat rainbow fire across the walls from the sunlight. 

Seto was terrified to reach out to her, afraid that touching her would shatter her. He simply stared at Rachel, waiting for her expression to morph into hatred. When she remained perfectly still, exhausted face framed by the fiery locks of hair he loved so much, he slowly raised his hand to meet hers. It felt as though it weighed a ton, dragged down by the guilt and anguish that continued to plague him. 

Rachel’s warm fingers closed around his cold ones, reassuring and soft. “Mokuba told me everything,” she said quietly, her eyes never leaving his. The corners of her lips twitched, as if a smile was desperate to break free. “I understand why you did what you did….but I wish you would have told me.” Eventually, one corner of her rosy lips turned up in a sad, lopsided half-smile. “I’m by your side for better or for worse – remember?” 

Seto felt something deep inside him crack. He fell into Rachel’s arms, the tide of emotion spewing forth from the center of his core as he wept openly into her shoulder. He grasped her tightly, afraid that if he let go he would fall into the black well of anguish that threatened to swallow him whole. As hot tears splashed down his cheeks onto her bare shoulder, he could hear the dead echo of Gozaburo’s voice begin to rise in the recesses of his mind. 

_Love is weakness, Seto—_

However, as his wife’s arms circled his neck and held him close, that voice tattered, ripped apart by the blazing brand of love and strength Rachel Pendragon had always bore for him. 

“Oh, Rachel,” Seto sobbed, holding her as close as he could. He turned his face into her neck, kissing it desperately. The scent of her skin brought the spark of hope back into his broken soul. “I don’t deserve you. _Please_ , forgive me….I’ll do anything…”

Her hand pushed itself through his hair, fingernails lightly scratching his scalp. After a moment, her soft voice brushed against his ear. “Seto, no matter what happens – or _has_ happened – I will always love you. Nothing you can do or say will ever change that.” Her hands slipped to his shoulders, pushing him back to arm’s length. She gazed at him, green eyes glossy. One copper eyebrow arched. “I _am_ hurt, and I’m upset. I’m angry, even.” She pursed her lips, her eyes hardening. “Before Mokuba came to me, I assumed you just weren’t ready for this kind of change. That you were afraid of being attached to a child you didn’t want, so leaving was your only option.”

Guilt pushed words into his mouth, but before he could get them out Rachel silenced him with a finger pressed to his lips. “ _But_ , something in me told me that was wrong. That you weren’t running from this because you didn’t want it. You were running because you were _afraid_ of something.” She sighed heavily, letting her eyes flutter closed for a moment before returning them to Seto’s gaze. “Seto, you will _never_ be like _him_. I wouldn’t have allowed myself to get caught up with someone like Gozaburo, let alone allow myself to get pregnant by someone like him. You are your _own man_ , Seto Kaiba. You’ve done great things for this world, things that have helped others pull themselves out of the dark and back into the light. I _believe_ in you. Mokuba believes in you – even _Yugi_ believes in you.” She cupped his cheek with her hand, her eyes turning imploring. “Now you need to start believing in _yourself_.”

Seto bit his lower lip to stop it from quivering. Fresh tears rolled down his cheeks as he gazed at Rachel’s beautiful face. Her fiery spirit burned as brilliantly as her incendiary hair, illuminating his way in the darkness as it always did. The guilt, though having devoured his soul, began to break against the beaming radiance of Rachel’s faith in him, like the breaking clouds after a storm. He reached for that light, craved it, allowed it to fill his soul to bursting with love and light he had always known was there, ever since he met her. He felt as though he could physically sense that light, warm and comforting, wrapping itself around his heart to guard it. It was a familiar sensation, one he had felt before but couldn't remember from where. All that mattered to him at that moment was his wife's loving embrace.

“Rachel—“ he began, but she stopped him again. 

“One more thing, then we can move on with our lives,” Rachel remarked, her voice growing a bit more bold. 

“Anything,” he replied. 

She removed her cupped hand from his cheek, swinging it back and slamming her open palm directly across his face. Stinging pain exploded in his jaw, catching him completely by surprise. She held him tight with the hand still wrapped around his right shoulder, preventing him from stumbling. When he turned back to face her, stunned incredulity rising in his chest, the blazing indignation in her eyes burned away any thoughts of argument he may have had. 

“Don’t you _EVER_ do that to me again, Seto Kaiba!!” she growled. The hand that slapped him found his cheek again, tenderly pressing the backs of her fingers against the spot she hit to soothe the pain. Her eyes locked with his. 

He swallowed, nodding quickly. “I never will, I swear it.” His hand covered hers, squeezing gently. A weak smile turned up the corners of his mouth. “I deserved that.” 

The smile he loved so much spread across her rosy lips as she wrapped her fingers around the base of his neck, pulling him into a desperate kiss and tight hug.

“Yes, you did. Now, let’s get a hold of Dr. Tanaka and see about that ultrasound.”

Seto stepped back, openly admiring Rachel for the first time since her announcement the previous day. The excitement that welled up inside him felt like he was looking at her for the first time all over again, taking in the joyful smile on her face with one of his own. He gingerly touched his palm to her belly, and though it felt no different to him physically, a tingling took up in his fingers as though he could actual feel the life growing there.

“I can’t wait, honey.”


	15. Discovery

Nicodemus intently watched the monitor at his ornate, gold-leafed desk, fingers laced beneath his stubbled chin. A cup of loose-leaf tea sat abandoned and cooling at his elbow, along with a plate of naan bread and hummus. The miniscule forms of Seto Kaiba and Yugi Muto skittered across the screen, the latter chasing the former into a dark access tunnel that led out of the stadium they had been dueling – and arguing - in moments before. 

With the help of the Sanctified he had sent into Domino after the Blue-Eyes White Dragon made her escape, Nicodemus had been able to track Kaiba’s movements four different ways; the Kaiba-Templar surveillance system, tracking devices placed in strategic locations around Domino that Kaiba and his family frequented, infiltrating Kaiba-Templar security with his own people, and through Heka. His Heka proved to be rather unreliable at such a distance, especially with the energy signature of Kisara having vanished completely. Kaiba’s energy was strong and bright, as was that of the woman he married, but there was no sign that anything had changed around them. The surveillance system and tracking devices only covered a limited range. His most reliable source of information was from the inside, and even then the security imposters could only get so close to the Kaibas. 

Stopping the security recording of the heated duel, Nicodemus sighed, running his fingers through his thick, black hair and tilting his head back. He felt as though he were wasting his time chasing smoke and mirrors. He was confident that Kisara was somewhere around Kaiba; there was no other place she would go, no other place she could hide. Something was shielding her energy from his detection, and with the technology Kaiba-Templar was able to produce it wouldn’t surprise him if she had hidden herself among it somehow. But there was still no indication that Kaiba had been made aware of her return, other than what seemed to be nothing more than a spat of marital troubles. 

His eyes traveled the domed ceiling of his personal chambers, the firelight from the mantle behind him casting the dun-colored adobe in shades of blood red and orange. It was a painful reminder that he was running on fumes to return Lord Apophis from the dead. The Great Serpent’s energy, though still incredibly powerful, had begun to wane; each time he called for blood, he required more and more. Nicodemus had been forced to incapacitate hundreds of men, women and children to sate the serpent’s appetite, and every time it seemed it was never enough. The primal urge to snuff out truth and light was overwhelming, so much so that Nicodemus felt if he focused on it too much his mind would crumble. 

He returned his attention to the monitor, starting the recording over from the beginning once again.

_I’ll find her, my lord. You will rise and cleanse the universe soon. She is running out of places to hide from me._

“High Priest!” 

Nicodemus looked up as Falcon swept into the room, black cloak dragging across the floor in a shush of cloth. His shock of blonde hair glowed like a candlewick against the flames as he bowed quickly at the corner of the desk. His dark eyes met Nicodemus evenly. “High Priest, I have just received news.” He swallowed, the powerful muscles in his neck quivering. “One of our brothers posing as a Kaiba-Templar agent overheard a conversation in their medical lab.” His eyes took on a shining quality, nearly as bright as the flames they reflected. “Nicodemus…the Lady Kaiba is _pregnant_.” 

Nicodemus felt his stomach drop through the floor. He clenched his fists so hard his knuckles cracked loudly into the silence. As soon as Falcon had spoken the words, it was as though Heaven and Earth opened up. The disappearance of Kisara’s energy trace, Kaiba’s strange behavior; like the last pieces of a puzzle he should have noticed before, all became blatantly apparent to him now. Nicodemus hadn’t realized he had been hyperventilating until he noticed Falcon’s fingers on his wrist, checking his pulse. 

‘It’s _her_ ,” he breathed, knocking Falcon’s hand away and rising from his desk. He gathered the hem of his black thobe, moving to the fireplace and standing beside it with his hand on the mantle for support. He cast his gaze to the flames, excitement boiling in his chest. “ _Kisara. That’s_ how she avoided our detection; she must have fused her energy with the Pendragon woman to shield herself, not knowing it would translate into a pregnancy. I doubt even Kaiba is aware of what his child truly is.” He turned to regard Falcon. “Do they know how far along Pendragon is?” 

“One month,” Falcon replied, standing to his full height and crossing his muscular arms. “The doctor at the Kaiba-Templar lab was scheduling her for her first sonogram.” 

Nicodemus snapped his fingers, joy flooding him. It had been exactly one month since the failed resurrection ritual; it sealed his theory completely. Now, it was just a matter of bringing Kisara back to the temple to finish the job. 

But it was going to be a tricky process. As much as he wanted to do it immediately, he felt in his gut that simply killing Rachel Pendragon and cutting the fetus from her womb would accomplish nothing but allow Kisara to escape again. They would have to wait for Kisara to develop, her energy to become firmly attached within the baby, in order to effectively seal her fate. Once it came time for Pendragon to give birth, Nicodemus planned to be there, ready to perform the ritual as soon as the child came out. 

_Then Kaiba will watch her suffer all over again, like he did 5000 years ago. His pain and anguish will fuel Lord Apophis even further._

But he needed someone who could get close enough first. He looked back to the flames once again, flexing the fingers of his left hand. As he stared at his wrist, a thought struck him. 

“Falcon, you were a physician before you joined the cause, were you not?” 

Falcon inclined his chiseled chin in reply. “I was. I performed general surgery and practiced general medicine as an M.D.” His dark eyes glistened intently. “You want me to insert myself into the Kaiba-Templar lab as Pendragon’s doctor.” 

Nicodemus shook his head, moving back toward the desk. “No, that would be too obvious. At least not right away. I need you to get in as close as you can and keep tabs on Pendragon’s pregnancy. I am unsure of how Kisara’s energy will affect her or the fetus, but it’s bound to have some supernatural side-effects.” He gazed at his right hand, nodding once. “I will see to it that our agents in Kaiba-Templar plant your credentials in the system as the medical lab’s newest physician.” He clapped a hand to Falcon’s shoulder, a smile creeping across his lips. “Go, prepare to leave. I will arrange a flight to Domino for you in a few hours. I expect you to report everything that happens. And should you be discovered, by Kisara or otherwise, do what you can to bring the Pendragon woman back with you. Timing is everything, Falcon. We can’t lose our hold.” 

With a silent dip of his head, Falcon swept from the room, leaving Nicodemus alone with the laughter of joy that welled up from his lungs. 

_No more running, little dragon. You’re MINE now, Kisara._


End file.
